What is Your Center?
by LuciferDragon
Summary: The Boogieman is not the only one that strikes fear in the hearts of children. There is a being in both written and oral stories that is the manifestation of evil and sin, older than Pitch himself. "I am known as many things, 'The Son of the Morning', 'The Lightbringer'. But you may call me Lucifer." M/F
1. Chapter 1

I thought I would try my hand at a Guardians fic. After a bit of planning and idea gathering, this is what I've gleaned from it Hope you like it. This is also my first time writing anything first person.

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He may get each night to terrify the children, as is his right as eldest spirit of darkness, but I retain the rights to one night. One fear infested night that is mine alone to command.

I came into existence four hundred and sixty years ago, under a full moon on All Hallow's Eve, before the day was anything special. On that day, I was accused and sentenced to death on the count of witchcraft. I was innocent, though it didn't matter then. It was more for the entertainment of the villagers, and to make a point, than anything else.

When I was hung, it was before they perfected the hangknot. The hangknot was an addition to the noose, which snapped the neck of the victim, rendering them dead instantly. That would have been merciful. With my hands bound by the same thick rope, I hung there, gasping, in pain, unable to breathe. I counted the minutes, the seconds. The world began to fade out around three minutes, but I was still aware of myself, aware of the bindings cutting in to my wrists and my throat as I struggled in vain, only out of reflex. Around ten minutes, twenty-eight seconds, the awareness faded away, the struggling subsided. At fifteen, the pain stopped.

A man spoke to me. Air rushed back into my lungs with a painful tug, and I clutched at my chest as it expanded. A second breath came, and a third, and a fourth. The pain slowly subsided and my vision grew lighter. As light as it could in the torchlight. I put a hand to my head and held myself up, retracting my hand instantly as I realized I was in a cart full of the dead. Panic hit me as I scrambled out of the cart and ran into the woods, not looking back at the villagers I once considered friends.

I felt the sting of branches slapping my bare legs and feet, but felt no blood dripping down my limbs. I only felt fear. In those woods, alone, scared, I could have sworn I heard laughter, deep and masculine. It only terrified me more.

I stopped short as I reached a lake. Everything went quiet. My attention was drawn to the moon, and I immediately heard another male voice, this one silvery, kind. The same that had spoken to me and made me breathe once again. _"I place upon you the gift of the Chosen. The gift of All Hallow's."_

"The gift of All Hallow's? I don't understand. I am not a witch! Doesn't anyone understand?" I shouted to the skies.

"_You are Hana Eve, the spirit of All Hallow's."_

I had no chance to argue, no chance to plead my case. What MIM said was fact, and fact was what MIM said. I knelt in the forming snow, fingers tracing the rope marks on my throat. I swallowed, feeling the flesh rise up to meet my fingers. I wanted to flinch at the divots in my skin.

I chanced a glance at my reflection and stifled a shriek. I looked at my hands and stared at the flesh for the first time. From what I could tell in the moonlight, my skin was ashen, as if I were one of the dead. As I thought about it, the tone was fitting. My reflection showed black markings around my eyes, over my nose and lips, and three thin lines ran vertically over my lips as well. I turned my face, seeing blackened cheekbones. Most shocking were the two small horns protruding from my limp short hair. I tentatively reached up to touch them, and retracted my hand just as quickly as I noticed they were indeed part of my skull.

As time passed, a century to be exact, I had accepted my role as Hana Eve. I was able to find the beauty in the darkest of things, and I was given control of one night a year, when the other spirit of darkness had his chance to rest with attempting what he could to strike fear in the hearts of children. Due to my ability, I was able to find beauty in his darkness as well, even though he didn't know how to respond to my comment on the matter. Not right away, of course. One does not play games with a prince of the night.

He taught me to use a child's fear against them, showed me how to harness their terror to raise my power. My abilities may have only been at their peak for one night a year, but that did not mean I was powerless the other three hundred and sixty four days. I had since hidden the rope burns on my throat under a choker that held a silver skull as a trinket. The burns on my wrist were always exposed, a reminder of what things used to be like. If he knew what my greatest fears were, he said nothing, and never entered my dreams in such a manner. In fact, he helped me hone my abilities. He gave me a home when the other Chosen turned their backs to my ways. He gave me a new life.

I remember life being grand for another two hundred and sixty years. Well… as grand as things could be when you shared a bed with Pitch Black. He had been kind in the beginning, when he first found me stumbling through the woods after my rebirth. When time passed and I accepted all of him, he changed. His demeanor grew darker. The playful spats grew in violence. He would apologize afterward, claiming he did not know what came over him, but I knew. Things would be fine for awhile. He would be kind, in his own demented way. He'd bring gifts tainted with an essence of terror that would enhance both our powers for a short time. Once, he even brought back a necklace with a dark ruby gem. That was one of the few days he was feeling exceptionally sweet.

Around a century ago, he began losing his mind. As I said, I couldn't blame him. The Guardians, Chosen created before my time to bring joy to children, had all but eliminated the children's fear of the Boogieman centuries before then. They simply did not believe in him. It was heartbreaking seeing them step through him, watching the King of Fear succumb to his own darkest secret.

He feared being forgotten.

He would once apologize for his violent outbursts, and I would forgive him. It was a dance we had been doing for a long time, only because I understood the frustration. When he stopped apologizing, I knew it wasn't going to get better. After a final hit, I gave up. I couldn't take it any longer. I was a Spirit, in command of Halloween. I couldn't let that rule my life. And so, while he was away, I left him a note and the necklace, and didn't look back.

That was a century ago. Now, something was wrong. The balance was being shifted.

I used the Wind to drop down from the top tiers of my tower and looked to my glass ball, ignoring the Shadow Bats flying around preparing for Halloween in seven months. I ran my hand over the surface and the shadows inside came to life, twisting and turning until images came through clearly. My heart dropped as I saw his Mares running rampant through The Warren. It was a grizzly sight, seeing hooves smash through eggs. I had no problems with his interest in putting fear into children; we were still one in the same in achieving that goal. This was a step too far. What was he planning?

I looked out of my window, meeting the Moon's gaze. "Is this why I was turned so long ago, Manny?" I narrowed my glowing yellow eyes. "I cannot control him, you know this. Why would I even try? The more fear a child has, the more powerful I become. Why would I stop him?"

As he had for the past four hundred and sixty years, Manny did not answer. In a way, he didn't have to. The silence was judgment enough.

I clenched my teeth and turned my attention back to the ball. Out of the corner of my eye I saw the glittering brighten on the massive globe before me. Unlike the others who monitored belief, I monitored fear. Usually it was a dull glitter, never changing. I took a step back as his intentions became clearer. I didn't like the goody-goody holiday icons, true, but they didn't deserve to have their believers changed. I bit my blackened lip, staring at the brightness of the globe. I didn't know what to do. I had known his true feelings ages ago. I knew why he was doing what he was. I couldn't lay blame upon him for anything. It's terrifying, not being believed in. In not being feared, in our cases.

All I could do was watch it all play out as my Shadow Bats continued to prepare for Halloween. I observed for hours as it happened, witnessed as his plans failed, watched as the children laid waste to his perfected Night Mares that he had painstakingly created over many, many years. I touched the surface of the glass ball, unable to believe what I was seeing. "Oogie, what have you done?"


	2. Chapter 2

2.

I gave a sharp whistle, calling for my steed. He responded immediately, materializing from the shadows. The solid mass of black-furred muscle stopped beside me, allowing me to leap on to his back with the glass ball in hand. My destination in mind, I threw the ball forward, letting the void open long enough to slip through. I managed to exit in a patch of snow-touched woods, hearing a fearful cry rise into the air. "Follow it, Hessian."

The stallion shot forward and I leaned into his pace. We managed to see a mass of black drag underneath the wooden frame of a bed, destroying it in the process. Where else would the entrance to his lair be? I nudged the stallion's sides. "Below!" We dematerialized and slipped below the surface of the dirt. Once in the main chamber we solidified again, and I felt horror setting in my gut. He was unconscious, surrounded by his creations.

They weren't protecting him.

I summoned shadows to my hands, forming two small bone scythes. Hessian charged into the circle of Mares, effectively breaking through a few of them. Hessian faded into the shadows, leaving me on my own, staring down the Night Mares, showing them no fear. It was a challenge that they seemed to have no interest in. With an indignant snort, they turned and walked away.

Once sure they had lost interest, I banished the weapons and turned my attention to the unconscious Spirit. I bit at my lip, almost hesitant to wake him. He hadn't been a joy to be around at that point. For a hundred years he had grown spiteful, more driven to regain his believers. It was hard to forget that before his slip into madness, he had been the only one of the Chosen to give me the light of the moon.

Fortunately, I didn't have to wake him. He groaned and opened his eyes, and I froze in place, not daring to breathe.

He narrowed his eyes. "Hana?"

Despite the situation, I couldn't stop the smile that broke past my restraint. "Nice to see you again, Pitch."

He quickly regained his senses and shuffled back to the wall. It was almost sad to see him so distraught. "The Night Mares—"

"—won't bother you for awhile," I interrupted, standing before him, adjusting the sleeves of my hanging orange shirt, one that exposed a good portion of torso. "You went too far, Oogie."

He flinched at the nickname. "You don't understand what it's like. I had to. I'm going mad, Hana."

"You are succumbing to your own fears. You can't do that with your pets around." I didn't understand. I wasn't known as an icon like the others, but Halloween still needed its Spirit to control it. Children still believed in the Spirit of Halloween. Not many believed in him. I helped him to his feet, trying to ignore the feeling of his own ashen skin I had seen fully in the past.

"The children do not fear me. I am losing control. The Guardians destroyed my hold on a small lot of them. Turned the Mares upon me. I have no dread to draw upon." His gaze grew frantic. "I cannot be a mere fairy tale! I need the fear to survive!" He growled to steady himself and stalked away down one of the dark corridors. One I recognized instantly as a corridor I hadn't been down in a long time. "I'm losing my mind."

I caught up to him and stepped in front of him, my hands automatically snapping up to stop his pace. I repressed an urge to shiver as they ended up under his coat. "Fear can never be destroyed. Darkness can never be snuffed out. Everyone fears something."

He curled his lip. "Really now? Then what is it you fear?"

"You know exactly what it is."

This seemed to distract him enough to calm him down. "If it is still the same as it was. In that case, whose fault is that?"

"This isn't the time." My voice was quieter than I wanted. Barely more than a whisper. The Spirit in front of me had been my first and only friend. Pitch had been there from the start, and showed me how to use my talents. I didn't need the Chosen. I had him. And, eventually, he had me, in his own way. "You've lost sight of your center."

He looked confused and swept an arm out over the expanse of his lair. "This is my center. Darkness, shadows, fear, and screams."

I brought his arm down and gently took hold of his hand. I chose to not remember the talents he had in those fingers. "That is not your center." I put a hand over his heart. "Who are you, Pitch? What is your purpose?"

"To bring nightmares and desolation to the children, of course," he said, his gaze growing angrier. If it weren't for our past encounters, I doubt I would still have had an arm attached to my body.

"Your center," I corrected, "is chaos. Total disruption of all things good-natured." I grinned. "It's what enchanted me all those years ago."

That seemed to throw him for a loop, considering we hadn't done… _that_ in a very long time. "Dreams are a source of terror. Dreams so real they wake up in a panic. Dreams that, if done right, can leave them scarred for their lives."

"You think so small, for someone of your prowess." I kept my hands to myself, catching my mind wandering. "Dreams are the subconscious mind telling someone what it needs to be told. To live out fantasies that can never be, such as a passion-filled night with someone you can't have." _Damn it Hana, stop._

"There seems to be something else on your mind than helping me."

I turned my back to him, keeping my gaze on his dark globe. "Your center is chaos," I continued, "and chaos does not branch from dreams. You can do real damage in the outside world. Exploit their darkest fears in reality, not dreams. Children are malleable. Use that fact outside of hiding under their beds."

"Or in closets," I heard him mutter bitterly.

I couldn't stop the grin that cracked on my face. "You come out of the closet often?"

"Stow it."

I jumped as I felt hands on the skin of my arms. I hadn't even heard him move.

"You know my tastes run in females."

I cleared my throat and stepped out of his grasp, still keeping my back to him. "You need a fresh start. If the Mares return and you have not regained your powers, you will be in trouble."

"Hana."

I flinched at his commanding tone, cursing how weak in the knees it always made me. To add insult to injury, he chuckled, sending a shiver up my spine. "You need to focus, Oogie."

"You're the only one to ever call me that."

"Some habits die hard, old friend."

"Like the one where you cross your arms and rub your skin when you're hiding from something."

I paused in doing just that and forced my arms at my sides, eliciting the chuckle from him again. He was infuriating, but charming at the same time. I rolled my glowing eyes and glanced at him. "So what if I am? I at least know my place among the Chosen." My eyes widened and I clapped a hand over my mouth as I saw his lightened expression grow dark. "Oogie, I didn't mean it like that."

"Yes, of course you did. You were the only one left. Why wouldn't you take a stab yourself at the fallen Chosen?" He turned and started to stalk away.

"No, Pitch don't—" I sank into the shadows and appeared in front of him, placing both hands to his chest, knowing full well I was touching skin. "I didn't mean it. I only want to help you find your center again." I attempted a smile through my skeletal stained lips. "So it can be like it was."

He stared at me, studying my intentions. A sinister smile encased his lips. "Would you really lie with a monster again? One who tried to annihilate the Guardians single-handedly and failed?"

"You know I care for those goody-goodies as much as you do. However, if the balance is to remain, well, balanced, we need them."

"But not me."

"I never said that." Once sure I had his attention again, I tried taking my hands back. I felt a shock run up my arms as he held them in place. "Light needs shadows. Good needs evil. Hope needs despair. God needs the devil. Without a touch of fear, the children will never be prepared for the world of adulthood. Terror would eat them alive."

"You can still do something about their purity."

"I can only do so much." I shrugged, pretending to not notice his hold. "I have one day a year compared to Sandy, Jack, and Tooth's three-hundred-and-sixty-five. Bunny and North have their big days, and even Groundhog has one. And the leprechaun…"

"Is a blithering drunk."

"True, but he still has a day, though he targets the adults more often than anything." His grasp slackened and I took the opportunity to pull back. "The fear of a child is a fitting meal. However, it is not rewarding."

He frowned. "How so?"

"Children are fairly easy to scare. A few cheap tricks can make them sleep with their parents for awhile. Thing is, the fear isn't as sweet as it was centuries ago. These children have been desensitized by their movies and video games. There is sweeter prey out there."

He seemed to catch on. "You are a Spirit linked to a whole holiday. So long as people celebrate Halloween, you will remain powerful. No one hast to believe your name."

"Due to that, I can be seen by anyone," I said, keeping him on the right track. "Oogie, I can be heard by all ages. So long as they celebrate the holiday, people can interact with me as if I were human again."

"That helps me how? The worst I can do is make it seem like a place is haunted. That is a sign of a ghosts, not the Boogieman."

I arched a brow. "It's a start. And, with my help, we can have your power back in no time. On top of that, you can receive the sweetest fear you've ever tasted." I held up a finger. "There is a catch."

"Which is?"

"You will need to find your center again."

He narrowed his eyes. "Why are you doing this for me?"

That caught me off guard. I cast my gaze away. There was no point keeping anything from him. Not at that point. "You're all I have left. If you were to completely lose sight of yourself, I really would be alone. I don't think I could handle that."

He didn't answer and I didn't push it. I knew it was best to let him decide what to do from there. I couldn't tell how long we stood in silence, but I didn't dare look at him. "How do you plan on finding my center?"

It wasn't a refusal. "Is there a Mare that hasn't turned on you?"

"Yes."

"Mount up then." I called for Hessian and swung up into the saddle as a Night Mare materialized below him. "Keep up."


	3. Chapter 3

3.

I didn't use a portal. As we traveled, I began to regret that decision. He didn't ask where we were going. He didn't ask anything at all. It was unusual for him to be so quiet. Though, given the circumstances, I suppose it was appropriate. On top of his humiliation in front of the Guardians, I had left him almost a century ago with a written note.

How else was I to break up with the King of Bad Things? Say "I'm sorry, but you're fucking crazy" to his face? That sounds sane. I almost fell off Hessian as he broke the silence.

"How have you been?" he muttered. "A hundred years is a long time."

"So it would seem. Do you snap at all the girls who offer their help?"

"I won't apologize. I'm only trying to be civil. I'm not the one who left without a spoken word."

I kept my gaze to the lights of the cities below.

He chuckled and forced his horse forward, cutting me off, causing me to look at him. "What's this? Guilt? It couldn't be. I wasn't aware the Spirit of Halloween could feel guilt."

I narrowed my eyes. "I'm only trying to help. Our past has nothing—"

"It has everything to do with this!"

I could feel Hessian twitch beneath me. The stallion feared no one but the man before him. I couldn't blame him. "Please. Let's just—"

"Not until I know why you're helping me after a century of silence!"

Something in me snapped and before I could stop it, the truth flew out. "Because I loved you!" For once, it looked as if I had stunned him. With the damage done, I gripped harder on Hessian's reins. "You were there from my rebirth after the others didn't approve of my sort of fun. You helped me, gave me a home, a sense of belonging." I led Hessian around him. "And if you're wondering, I don't anymore. Haven't for a long time." It was half true, and said more to make myself believe it. I valued his safe being, and I cared about his sanity. And I didn't want to be alone completely. Knowing he was out there at all times had been enough.

Did I ever regret leaving? Of course, for awhile. It was for the best. When the playful violence was replaced with actual blows, I knew to get out. He didn't come after me, so I had assumed he had accepted my choice. Knowing him, he probably never realized he did anything wrong.

I looked down at the city again as Hessian's hooves walked on the support of Wind. The part we were over currently was notorious for its seedy nature. However, the calm glittering of lights told a different story. I could see it for what it really was. Misunderstood, mistreated, unloved. My breath caught in my throat with how close to him it seemed.

He had gone quiet again, and I almost believed he had returned to his lair. Only the occasional snort of his Mare gave him away.

A tingle in my horns caught my attention, signaling we were right where we had to be. Without warning I dropped Hessian into a dive. He galloped against Wind's hold, racing towards solid ground, snorting and grunting as he ran. With a whinny he leapt from the air and landed on concrete. A moment later the other horse landed similarly.

He curled his lip as I dismounted Hessian, keeping him close. "A cemetery? What's so special about dead humans?"

I couldn't help but smile as he also dismounted his horse. "Is that all you see?"

"Acres of them."

"Such a shame your view is so small." I stepped over a low chain fence, ignoring the sign that said to keep off the hallowed ground. All around me I could feel the spirits of the soldiers that refused to part with their bodies, still not accepting their fates. I knelt next to a headstone with one such soldier. He stood over his grave, staring at his name. "Private Evans," I said, touching the white marble.

The spirit of a man in his early twenties nodded. "Ma'am."

"You realize this isn't a dream, right?" I had done this many times. It didn't hurt any less.

The spirit nodded again. "I can't leave them. They're still fighting. My wife, she's about to have our first kid."

The stories varied, but they all held pain. Always. I was not a reaper, and I did not wish to be. I could still lead the dead to rest like they did. I tended not to. My job had me working with spirits that chose to remain to raise hell.

"They need me, Ma'am."

I tapped in to the headstone, reaching for the true memories. Mrs. Evans had already birthed the child. The daughter was three now. Mrs. Evans never remarried. The soldiers visited every so often when on leave. I stood and went to his side, placing a finger to his forehead. The spirit gasped as I showed him his friends, his wife. His eyes shined as he saw the little girl. "My daughter…?"

I nodded and smiled. "She's healthy, doing well. She would have loved to meet her father, but her mom keeps the world going."

Evans looked to me, still bewildered. "I had a little girl."

I nodded again. "The world is an ugly thing, but you managed to produce such a beauty to counter it. You should be proud."

He let out a short laugh, though the smile faded fast. "Are you here to take me away?"

"Only if you're ready."

He looked back to the headstone, heavy jaw locked in thought. A tear escaped his eye and his Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed hard. After a moment, he nodded.

I touched his shoulder. "Thank you for your sacrifice, Private Evans." Within moments he faded to nothing, leaving my hand hovering.

A heavy scoff sounded from behind me, reminding me I wasn't alone in the cemetery. "This was to show me what? That you do have a heart?"

"That there is beauty in everything. Even death." I turned and didn't meet his gaze as I walked past him. I placed my hands to the peeling pale bark of a tree. "What else do you see here?"

"A tree."

I nodded, staring up at the pink blossoms.

"What is so damned special about a tree? They're always in cemeteries."

"Not these." I tapped the trunk, sending a short pulse through the wood. It immediately released the blossoms, raining soft, pink petals all around us. "A sight of beauty, grown from the soil of the dead." I caught a whole flower and smiled at it. "That is my center. I can find beauty in everything." I took the flower to him and placed it in his palm. "Surprisingly enough, I can find it in you as well. Not as easily as I once could, but it is still there."

"I highly doubt that."

"You'd be surprised." I stepped away, enjoying the blossoms again. "The soldiers here died for a cause, each one of them. They sacrificed their lives to protect the lives of their loved ones, so they could live on."

"And what does this have to do with my center?"

I finally looked at him, finding myself locked in his gaze. "What do you protect?"

He curled his lip. "I protect no one."

"Then your cause is lost."

I could see him growing angrier. "Woman I swear to MIM I will beat the answer—" I backed up a step and he fell silent. I'm not sure how long we stayed that way, but I could for sure see thoughts race behind his eyes. He was the first to look away. "I have no one to protect."

"You drive them away. It's what you've always done." I found myself rubbing the skin of my arms and I held them in place, gripping tightly. "The others, they protect the children. What do you protect?"

"No one. Not for a very long time."

I forced the guilt away. It wasn't my fault. It really wasn't. … Was it? I looked to the horses and couldn't help it as a smile slipped on to my lips. Hessian and the Mare were nickering at each other, bumping heads and resting against the other's neck. My smile fell as I realized he had followed my gaze. I tilted my head to the right. "Follow me."

He did as asked as I led him up the cement pathways, past a large open theater. I could hear the tapping getting louder, as well as the click of a shifting gun. I took him to the top of the stairs and leaned against a wall, staring at the monument the army man was standing watch over. Beyond it stood the rest of the city, illuminated in all its glory. Pitch looked on in confusion. "What is he doing?"

"It is his duty to stand watch over the grave of forgotten soldiers. Fighters who gave it their all until they were on their last breath, and continued to fight. They were soldiers who couldn't be identified. For their bravery, they are buried here, and are protected at all times by various men in the army."

"But why guard someone they have no idea who it is?"

"Honor. They do not abandon their own."

He frowned again. "Can you see them?"

I shook my head. "I can't. Their spirits have parted a long time ago. They would have had no regrets." The soldier turned, tapping his boots together. "That is the main cause for a spirit to linger. The more regret, the stronger the anchor."

We both went silent for a moment, merely watching the lone soldier wear the path further into the stones. When he broke the silence, I was not prepared for the question. "Do you have regrets?"

"I— Of course I do. What about you?"

"Some. Nothing can be done about them though."

"It depends on what you regret. If it can be corrected, it is worth a try." I stood without warning and started walking away to the horses. I didn't look to see if he was following. What was it that he regretted? It wasn't as if he was ever sincere with his apologies in the past. What would make him feel guilty enough to regret?

I made it to the shadows of a cherry blossom tree before a strong hand found itself on my upper arm. "I know why you left."

I looked at the cement, my hair curtaining my eyes. "It's in the past."

"It's a regret I've carried for a century, Hana."

I pulled out of his grip. "Sure you have. Just like the last time you apologized." I focused on Hessian, seeing him trot off into the woods with the Mare. _Backstabber. _"Looks like we're stranded. Damned stallion. Knew I should have made him a gelding."

I turned in time to see Pitch cringe slightly. "Where's the fun in that?"

"There isn't." I sat beneath the tree, looking out at the hundreds of rows of marble headstones.

"Can you see the beauty in this situation?"

I clenched my teeth. "Don't be a smartass. Your Mare is just as guilty."

"At least one of us is getting along."

"They're animals. Rutting is a thing they've been doing for a very long time." I continued to keep my sight to the headstones and lost souls as he sat beside me in the grass. "Just because they originate from dark thoughts doesn't change that."

I heard him chuckle, which finally brought my attention to him. I would have looked away if he didn't catch my gaze. "When was the last time we were at a cemetery together?"

"A long time ago." I swallowed as a flash of an image passed over my vision and heat flowed through my body at the brief memory of intertwined, writhing bodies on the cold, wet grass.

"Almost a century and a half now."

I only murmured an agreement as another memory flashed by, full of laughter and possessive bites.

"Halloween, 1862 if I remember correctly. I hope I didn't… distract you from your duties."

"_Scream for me, Hana. Scream for your master."_

I cleared my throat and looked down again. "No, not at all. I was still able to keep everyone in line. It was a lot easier to do than now."

"_You're mine."_

He laughed and I could feel his weight shift. Or was it my weight that shifted? I couldn't tell. The only thing I could tell was that we were closer, touching actually. "You've been doing a fine job with Halloween the past hundred years. I take it you've been busy."

I nodded, biting my lip as I remembered him kneeling in front of me, making my head reel at his touch. "Y-yeah. Kids are harder to scare than they once were. I keep busy with finding new things to terrify them with. No time for a personal life when I have to spend personal time with my research. And… pickings are kind of slim when you work with dead things."

He snorted. "I'm sure a few have a, ah, bone to pick with you."

I felt my cheeks burn slightly, but I smiled regardless. "I do work with a lot of stiffs." We both choked on our laughter.

"At least they don't have trouble with blood flow."

I shoved at his shoulder, a giggle escaping my restraint. "Don't be mean. They have no control over it."

He shoved back, but in a way I hadn't felt in a very long time. He was playing around. I laughed. "Don't you shove me, wiseass! I'll shove back." I pushed a little harder, but he retaliated. My heart skipped a beat as I lost my balance and fell backward. I gripped on to his coat but it didn't help. I ended up pulling him with me.

We didn't move. Neither of us dared to. His nose laid mere centimeters from mine, and I could feel his breath on my lips. "You said my center is chaos?"

I gave a slight nod. "That is what I believe." My mind screamed logic, my heart screamed love. Both of them were dicks, sending mixed signals to the rest of my body. Lust was building, backed by confusion, uncertainty.

"I suppose that is fitting." I could see him look at me differently, but I wasn't sure how. He surprised me again by closing the distance between us, pulling my lips to his. A shock immediately flashed through my body and I reacted just as I did in the past, as if nothing bad had happened. I pressed against him harder, shifting my mouth open for him.

I could feel his hand wandering up my loose orange tank, over the black bra beneath. I should have thrown him off, I know, but it had been so long since I'd felt any man's touch, let alone his. Our kiss grew more frantic, as if it was our source of life. His hands shifted to my back, making me sit up on my knees between his legs. We broke the kiss only long enough to tug the orange tank off my body, setting it down in the cemetery grass. He was instantly on me again, one hand in my hair and the other on my back, pressing me in to him. I pushed on his jacket, feeling it slip away from his skin to rest around his arms.

I should have turned him away, I know. I should have put a stop to this. But the kiss was too good, the touching too intense. Instead, I let him do as he pleased. I let him mutter sweet nothings, let him touch me as he hadn't in over a century, let him close. He was gentle, caring, and didn't call himself my master. He didn't do anything dominant or possessive as before. He did something he never did before.

He made love to me.

Cheesy, yes. But that is the only way I could explain that night. He was patient, slow, deliberate. He said things he hadn't in a very long time. Why he did what he did, I don't know, but I, like any other female would, accepted the advances, finding the flattery appealing. It didn't feel like sex, it was deeper than that. If it was only true on my end, I would have been happy.

In the end we stayed on the grass under his coat, remembering times past where we would do the same things. I wasn't sure how long he would be like this and so ran with it. The more we talked the more I realized I was right about his center. While he did represent fear, shadows, screams and whatever else he prided on being, that was just the surface. Below simmered chaos. A complete disregard for good order.

Just the way I remembered.


	4. Chapter 4

4.

I should have turned him away.

The night was still young for us, and he needed to regain some of his power. We managed to find a target that was well within his skill set. The target was an early twenties female, living all on her own in the city. We followed her into her apartment, hidden from view. I kept my presence masked, making sure the woman wouldn't see or hear me. With how late it was, we didn't have to wait long for her to ready herself for sleep.

He laughed as I turned my gaze away while the woman undressed. "Feeling a little naughty?"

"I feel like we shouldn't be watching. Privacy and all."

"Says the woman who doesn't mind fucking on hallowed grounds in public."

I flushed. "That's different."

"Is it?"

The lights went out and I held up a finger to silence him. "A young woman, alone in the city, an easy target." I gestured to the bed where the woman was getting comfortable for the night. "You're up."

He dissolved into the shadows, materializing by the window. He scraped his nails down the glass pane, making an awful sound.

The woman sat up straight in bed. "Hello?"

Pitch vanished again, though I didn't see where he returned. I heard something fall in the kitchen and shatter, making the woman jump and hold the sheets closer to her body.

"Is someone there?" The woman swallowed hard. "I know how to defend myself, buddy!"

The sound of nails running over the walls rang out, getting closer and closer to the bed. Still, even I couldn't see him. I was getting chills. It had been a long time since I had seen him at work.

"This isn't funny!" She looked panicked as she carefully got out of bed. "Who's there?"

I heard tapping on the vanity across the room and looked at the same time as the woman. I had to smile at his crafty ways. Before our eyes, fog took over the mirror, and he began to write in the moisture. _"I know what you fear"_ was the first line.

The woman's breathing came out heavier, her heart began racing. I closed my eyes and relished the growing terror. It was pure, sweet, and all for him.

The mirror clouded over again. _"Just how did that child die?"_

The woman closed her eyes. "No no, this isn't happening. I'm dreaming. I had one too many and I'm dreaming." As she opened them again, a new line appeared. _"Just what happened that day at the lake?"_

"This isn't funny!"

It was, actually. Then again, my opinion on humor is skewed, so they say. The woman held on to her head as memories racked her mind. When she looked up, the words had been replaced again. _"The Boogieman knows everything."_

The fear intensified and I could feel the effects. It was similar to being high. I saw him materialize finally. I wasn't the only one who saw him. As his body solidified, the woman's heart rate flew through the roof.

He felt it too, I knew. His lips pulled back in a grin, showing his crooked teeth. His pale eyes shined with malice.

The woman was petrified and fell to the floor, a horrified look on her face. Her mouth moved a few times, as if she were trying to form words.

He merely folded his arms behind his back and leaned forward. "Boo."

The woman shrieked and scrambled to her feet, darting into her adjoining bathroom, slamming the door behind her.

I burst into laughter and clapped my hands together. "Brilliantly done!"

He held his hands in front of him. "She saw me?"

I nodded, overcome with glee. "She saw you."

"She heard me."

"She still can hear you." I looked over my shoulder to the dark door. "However, I think this one is tapped." I cast my gaze back to him. "How do you feel?" I wasn't expecting his sort of answer. He grasped me around my waist and hefted me up in a spin, laughing. I held on to his shoulders and instinctively wrapped my legs around him. "I take it you feel great."

"More than that. I feel feared." He tilted his head back as he laughed harder. He looked as he did centuries ago, sure of himself, of who he was.

"That's wonderful, Oogie. But, ah, would you mind—" I wasn't allowed to finish as he pressed his lips to mine. Just as in the cemetery, he wasn't possessive as he used to be. Before I knew it, my back was to a wall. My head went lighter than it already was from the high I was on from the terror.

He pulled back, his face serious again. I could tell he was on the same high I was. "Why didn't you give up on me?"

I looked to his lips just to avoid his eyes. "I told you. I couldn't let you lose your sanity. I loved you once. Due to that, I can't sit aside and watch you suffer."

"Still just once?"

I nodded and leaned back against the wall, taking what distance I could while he still had our hips pressed together. "There's just… I can't live that life, Pitch. I can't wake up every morning wondering if my boyfriend will beat me that day when something goes wrong."

He flinched and finally let me go gently. "You have to understand—"

"Oh no, I understand. You have a volatile temper, and I was the convenient target for that temper. What was I going to do? Strike back?"

"You should have," he snapped, stepping back, a snarl evident in his features. "You should have grown a spine and thrown a few punches of your own!"

My own temper flared and I did what I never thought I could do. I slapped him as hard as I could. The sound of skin cracking against skin rang out, and my palm began to sting, as well as my eyes. A lump formed in my throat, but I curled my lip at him to ignore it. "I did strike back. I left. It was a damned good decision on my part." I shoved at his shoulder and he moved out of the way, still stunned I had actually hit him. "Find your center and regain your power on your own. I was a fool for believing I could help you."

"Hana…"

I stepped on to the open windowsill, taking to the fire escape platform. "Good luck with your search, Pitch. I hope you find what you're looking for." I whistled for Hessian and leapt to the stallion's back as he appeared, standing with the help of Wind. At that point, I didn't care if Pitch regained his power or if he succumbed to his madness. I needed to get away from him.

I refused to let him see me cry.


	5. Chapter 5

I have a cloudy view of where I'd like this story to go. Due to that, I'd like to hear what you readers would like to see happen. Anything goes.

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5.

I leaned back on my bay windowsill on top of the narrow three-story tower. I took a deep tug from the hose of my small hookah next to me, tasting a sweet fruity flavor. I let the thick white smoke out through my nose, watching it quickly fade away. I let out another batch, manipulating the smoke in a few shapes.

Soft nickering sounded next to me and I looked to see Hessian standing on Wind, his head bowed to nudge my shoulder gently. His consciousness pressed to mine and I allowed him in. _"You've been sad for months."_

"Piss off." I looked away, hitting the hookah again.

"_Halloween is tomorrow. The necromancers are looking to the spirits to be let loose."_

"And the Skels and Bats?"

"_Putting the finishing touches on their wares." _He snorted again. _"You haven't been sleeping."_

I couldn't. He had tried to find me that way, to talk to me while my defenses were down. I woke suddenly and haven't slept much for seven months. I glanced down at the globe, seeing the light flicker. They had become brighter over the past seven months. I hadn't ventured past my lair, but I knew it was him.

I looked up as I felt a cold breeze, and was startled as I saw the master of ice sitting in front of me, staff forever clutched in his grasp. I narrowed my eyes. "What do the Guardians want with me?"

Jack pulled a look of mock offense. "I may have taken the role of Guardian, but I am still a neutral party."

I rolled my eyes. "What do you want, Jack?"

He cast his gaze away. "Fear has been rising again. We know you two have history. We need you to find him and—"

"No."

He looked back at me, thoroughly confused. "No?"

"I want nothing to do with him." I hung the hose over the hookah and dropped past Hessian, standing in front of my globe. "If Pitch is causing trouble again, it is not my place to stop him. You're asking me to tell him to stop doing what he was created to do."

Jack landed beside me. "Hana, you're the only one he listens to."

I curled my lip at him. "The balance is still in place, is it not?"

"Yes, but—"

"Then leave him alone. And do not ask me to look for him."

He tried to say something else, but seemed to change his mind. "I don't know why you two split all those years ago, but he needs to be watched."

"He is not a child."

"I know he isn't," he said, his voice calm and reassuring. "Neutral party, Hana. You can talk to me."

"I have a holiday to prepare for."

"I'm only trying to help."

I flinched as my own words rang out. I knew he was true to his word. He hadn't turned his back to me like the others. He hadn't been around when I was reborn. He had come to be when I was still happy in my life.

"Hana, you can talk to me. What did he do to you?"

I leaned against the guard rail of the ground floor surrounding my globe, gripping on tight. "Don't make me go back to then."

"Hana, please."

"It doesn't matter, Jack."

"It does matter!" He grabbed my shoulder and turned me around, making me see the concern in his features. I hadn't expected him to care so much.

"Why?"

"Because unlike the others I give a damn about you."

I looked at him in confusion. "What are you saying?"

"Why do you think I haven't messed with your day? The only thing I do is provide chills in the air to help. I just never approached you because of him. He threatened my life when I first saw you work. He was clear when he told me to stay away from you."

I reached up and took hold of his hands, taking them from my shoulders as I realized what he was saying. "Jack, please don't."

Realization passed across his face. "You still—"

"I don't know. There hasn't been anyone else. I don't want there to be."

"Are you so sure of that?"

I wasn't. I wasn't sure of anything anymore. Besides the man standing in front of me, closer than I should have been letting him. I shrugged past him. "Go home, Jack."

"He beat you."

I froze, eyes wide as memories resurfaced.

"I know he did. Your skin bruises too easily."

"Please, just go."

"I only want to help you."

"Please, Jack."

He went quiet and circled around in front of me. "I'll leave, if that's truly what you want. I want to do something first."

Before I could say a word otherwise he kissed me. What I hated even more was how my body responded to him. It let him do as he pleased no matter what my mind said. It didn't feel right. Even his touch was cold.

Jack was not him.

I pushed him off, glaring at him. "Now get out." I watched him nod and with the help of Wind, he was gone. I rubbed my wrist against my lips and retreated to the lower levels to oversee the wares. Hessian stood at my side, materializing from the shadows. "Don't judge me."

"_I'd never judge. He came on to you." _He snorted, the sound close enough to a person clearing their throat. _"Pray that Pitch will never find out."_

I scoffed. "Would it matter? I'm not afraid of him."

"_Yes, but it is not you who would be left without a limb."_

I rolled my eyes and corrected a few of the things the Skels had painted wrong, pushing them in the right direction. "He was a possessive ass in the past, but I doubt that he would do such a thing." I observed one of the pumpkins, finding something off about it.

"_You obviously never saw how he looked at you."_

"No, it would seem I haven't." My patience was wearing thin. Did no one understand I didn't want to think of him? That I had been avoiding him for seven months for a reason? I thought he could be changed, that he could have been the man I fell for so many centuries ago. I frowned. "Do you think I was rash with my choice?"

"_Of leaving him behind? Yes." _The stallion stood in front of me and kept our eyes locked together. _"You still haven't told me why you took off. From what I heard in the cemetery that night, you two were doing well."_

Very well indeed. I had almost forgotten the skills he possessed outside of frightening others.

"_A man in his position cannot change overnight. I understand what he did to you in the past, but that does not mean he will do it again. He needs time. He needs you to not give up on him."_

I gestured up to the globe before us. "He's doing well enough on his own. I haven't been able to use that thing for a nightlight in ages."

Hessian looked over to my worktable where I housed my crystal spheres. _"Is he?"_

I hadn't looked. Hadn't bothered to see if he really was doing as well as I thought he was. The globe could have been glowing brighter due to the increased paranoia of the humans, with their bombs, school shootings, and war. It could have had nothing to do with Pitch. "You're trying to trick me into checking up on him."

"_I'm not."_

I rolled my eyes and stalked over to the worktable, placing a crystal in the holder. "Fine. We'll see if you're right. I say he's doing fine." I ran my hand over the smooth surface, bringing the shadows trapped inside to life. With a focus of will, the shadows gave way to his lair, where he impatiently paced in front of his own globe. I felt my heart race as I saw him, and nothing I said to myself would slow it down. However, as I looked closer, something seemed wrong, as if he was fighting with himself. He had his powers back, his mentality was stable again, so why was he so upset? Had the Guardians approached him to tell him to stop on their own? I shook my head. No, they'd rather have me stick my neck out and tell him to stop being who he was meant to be.

As I watched on, I could hear him muttering, but I couldn't tell what. I was worried, yes, but not enough to do something about it. He was a grown man; he could take care of himself. I ran my hand over the crystal and let the shadows return to normal. "See? He's fine."

"_That didn't look fine to me."_

It didn't, but what could I do about it? If he was facing another problem, he could deal with it on his own. My horns tingled painfully and I put a hand up to stabilize it. The time had come to send the creatures out.

Halloween was upon us.


	6. Chapter 6

Another thing I'd like to know is if I should continue brushing over the naughty bits, or full out write them. I will be doing both, and so I'd like to know what you would like to read. Sex does sell very well. ;)

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6.

Screams. Terror. Hearts racing. Dry throats. Full pillowcases and buckets of sweets. I observed my work from afar in this specific New England town, the one I had died in so many years ago. It was closing in on two in the morning now. The rush of the holiday was over, and I had had my fill of fear. My helpers did their part, and they were now off terrifying the lone wolves out, seeking to prove they were more brave than they really were.

I overheard one such group of teens say something of the sort. They were daring each other to enter the dilapidated house on the edge of town. They insisted it was haunted, and I wouldn't argue that. I had made sure to put a few of my spooks in there earlier to scare the children that innocently walked past it. The majority of them ran faster than they probably ever had in their short little lives, screeching for their mothers.

One of the men in the group of four pulled his other male companion aside. "C'mon Jimmy, it's just a house. We can do this." He looked to the two waiting females. "Besides, you can give a comforting arm to Jessica, if you know what I mean." The darker skinned male waggled his eyebrows at the paler man, still in his vampire costume.

Jimmy rolled his eyes at his werewolf donned friend. "I told you to back off with that, Kris. We'll do that when we feel like it. Just because Jessica wants to wait doesn't mean anything."

"Uh-huh, sure."

"And besides, a haunted house? That's the worst place to have sex."

_Not exactly,_ I mused, shaking my head at pleasant memories.

"Have it your way. Me and Latoya will be bumpin' uglies if you two won't." Kris laughed and caught up to the two women, pulling one dressed as a "witch" into a tight embrace. "You two aren't afraid are you?"

The lighter skinned woman scoffed. "Puh-lease, Kris. It's just an old shack. Nothing more to it." She adjusted her "bee" costume and looked as her boyfriend approached. "You can take it, right Jimmy?"

The man seemed to take on a bravado of sorts at her seductive tone. "Yeah, of course I can."

I watched them head towards the house, laughing at their plans, thinking themselves so brave. "I don't think you can," I muttered, and used Wind's help to enter the house before them in an old bedroom on the second story. The door below creaked open and I watched from the railings how they entered the dark home so carefully. Their bravery had diminished. My job would only be easier. As soon as they were clear of the door I send a tendril of will to it, slamming it closed behind them, relishing the girls' shrieks.

"Just the wind," Kris said, rubbing his hands up Latoya's bare arm. "C'mon baby, we got this."

"Not exactly…" I whispered, and glanced up at the chandelier above their heads. With a twist of my wrist, I sent my shadows to it, making the dangling glass chime against each other as it moved.

"I don't like this," Jessica said as their tension mounted. Children's fear was a delicacy, yes, but for a young adult, it was sweeter. Their imaginations still ran wild like a child, though they understood that they could, in fact, die.

I had to draw this out. It had been a long time since I was able to enjoy myself like this. The sensation of absorbing terror was second only to sex for me, though that could have been due to who my sex partner had been. A creak of the floorboards in the room I had entered in drew my attention to it. I narrowed my eyes and brushed it off as the house itself creaking as houses tended to do. I watched the kids shuffle into the old parlor, and I didn't even have to do anything for the next scare. An old Grandfather clock chimed off to the side, making them all jump and scream. I couldn't help but laugh. They were such easy prey.

At my laughter their fear escalated. Jessica gripped on to Jimmy's arm. "I don't like this. Let's go."

"Someone's just in here playing a Halloween prank," Kris answered for him.

My glowing eyes lit up with mirth. "If only you knew, kiddies," I muttered, and scraped my nails against the window pane behind me, making the glass screech under my touch.

"What if what they're saying is true?" Latoya said with a shaky tone.

Kris scoffed more to steady his nerves. I could tell that much. "What? That the Boogieman really exists? Stop listening to your little sister, she's just a kid."

That snapped my anger. They thought I was Pitch messing with them? How dare they? A deep, masculine, familiar chuckle rose to my right, and I glanced over, almost having a heart attack as I saw him in the doorframe. "What the hell are you doing here?" I hissed. "This is my night, not yours."

Pitch merely shrugged and crossed his arms, leaning into the doorframe. "Apparently they think it's me. Shall we let them believe so?"

Still angry at him I advanced on him, shoving him in the old bedroom and slammed the door shut behind me, knowing very well the sound would travel to the kids. "Stay out of this."

He put a hand over his heart in mock sincerity. "I've done nothing but regain my title. Parents have begun to tell their children the old stories that I will take the naughty ones away in the night and eat them." He smiled his crooked smile. "And what recognition have you gotten tonight?"

I was angry with myself for not being as livid with him as I should have been. "I don't need recognition. I represent everything to do with tonight. So long as people celebrate, I have what I need to survive." I gestured to the door. "Those kids are my last target for the night."

"And I see you're doing a bang-up job of scaring them," he responded, sarcasm dripping from his words.

"Just because they think it is you doesn't matter." I began getting distracted, my eyes wandering like a hormonal child. I gave myself a mental slap on the wrist. "What are you even doing here?"

"Watching you slip up in what you do best."

I curled my lip, my anger still dissipating. "You're infuriating." I turned my back to him and went to leave the bedroom. I was stopped and spun around and backed into the door hard enough to make the sound echo.

"I'm infuriating?" He put his hands to the door, keeping me in place. "I didn't promise to help you and then take off at the first chance."

"That isn't why I left," I said calmly. "You've done well enough for yourself the past seven months. Well enough that Jack came to see me to tell you to back off."

He looked angry then. "It isn't Frost's place to seek you out."

"Yes, especially not after you threatened his life if he approached me." I arched my brow. "I wonder why that is."

"He looked at you wrong." He leaned in closer. "What did he do?"

"Told me to find you to tell you to leave the children alone. I told him to leave, he wouldn't. He confessed that he… admired me for some time." I rolled the rest of the encounter around in my head. I wanted him angry. "He kissed me."

I could feel his grip slacken. I refused to tell him that I ended it before anything came from it. If it would make him pissed off, I wanted it. "I'll kill him."

That wasn't the reaction I was looking for. It was anger, yes but… "I do not belong to you, Pitch. I haven't for a long time. If I really wanted to lie with another man, I would."

"But you haven't, have you?"

He had me there. I hadn't bothered to look. I wasn't lying when I told him all those months ago that I had no time to seek out companionship if I wanted it. "It isn't like you haven't done the same."

"I haven't. Hard to do so when no one can see you, when no one can hear you but children." He curled his lip. "What else did he do?"

"Nothing. I made him leave." I used his slackened grasp to get out of his way. "You don't need to kill him over something as trivial as a kiss."

"No, I suppose I don't. I can maim him at least."

I let a breath of a laugh out and looked at him again. "Really, don't. I took care of it. I would have been able to stop him if he tried anything else."

"Would you now?"

"I can protect myself. If I don't want something to happen, it won't happen."

His gaze grew darker, his grin broader. "Is that so?"

I couldn't imagine what was going through his head. As I was about to answer, I heard one of the other doors upstairs open and close, closely followed by another. I cracked a grin of my own. "Teenagers are so predictable. Give them a private place and they'll ruin it in a moment."

"Not just teenagers." I almost shivered at the growl that accompanied the words. "What should we do with them?"

"We?" I scoffed, not able to believe his gall. "No, there is no 'we' here."

"And why not? You've had great results in the past."

I couldn't argue that point. Granted, it had been a hundred years ago, and people were a bit easier to scare in 1912 and earlier. The results had always been grand. I could only do so much at a time on my own. With a mental sigh I crossed my arms. "What do you have in mind, Oogie?"

He seemed to catch on to the change in nicknames. His face turned thoughtful as he paced around me, making me feel very uncomfortable. "How well can you still act?"

I repressed a shiver that wanted to trickle down my spine as he ran a finger over my exposed shoulders. "Very well." I jumped as he gripped the front of my already loose tank and ripped it almost in half. "What the hell, Pitch?"

"As terrifying as you can be, I'd like you to play a different role for this, given circumstances."

"Which is what?" I looked on in shock as he opened a vein on his arm with a sharpened nail. He trickled the blood over my chest, making three large mock gashes. He could have just put the real things there to make it authentic, but he didn't. "A victim of what?"

He gripped my arm with a bloody palm, leaving a solid imprint. "A victim of me, of course."

I couldn't stop the grin that slipped. "So full of yourself." My heart skipped a beat as his hand hovered over my throat for only a moment before immediately moving to grip my hair in his fist. He had remembered my only other fear.

"I'm just aware of my talents." He leaned closer to my ear and whispered, "All of them."

The deep rumble sent a tingle down my spine, and my hands actually twitched against my restraint of wanting to back him into the bed and stay there until morning. This was exactly the reason why I had been avoiding him. I couldn't stop my body from reacting to even the smallest of touches. My eyes widened and my hands flew up to stop his as I felt him tug on the choker.

"It's part of the appearance, Hana."

I could stand the marks on my wrists; they didn't show anything in particular. I could stand the small horns and pointed ears; they never bothered me. The only thing that bothered me of my Chosen body was the mark of my death. Before my eyes the villagers called for the end. The pain tightened around my throat. I blinked and it was all gone. My fingers gripped his coat tightly.

"It still pains you, doesn't it?"

I could only nod and lean my head against his chest.

"The collar stays on then."

I had expected him to rip it off. Or tell me to suck it up. How much had he changed? He was still the same man in many ways, but not all of them. Was Hessian right? I knew he had his own scars that he hid away. He didn't seem to be bothered by them. How long would it be before I could be the same with the gouges the rope made?

"I think we've given them enough silence to grow comfortable again," he said, not bothering to unlatch my hands. "How well can you shriek?"

"Not the best in the world, but still believable."

"Then it is time I told you exactly how to get every drop of terror out of those adolescents."

I pulled away from him in time to see his crooked smile grow. I gave him a grin of my own. "Just like old times."


	7. Chapter 7

There is smut in this chapter. I didn't brush over it like I did with the cemetery. The story is rated M for a reason. Also, the rhyme is an old Mother Goose tale that I thought fit his story very well.

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7.

"_It's all about buildup," he said with a particularly hard thrust of his hips. "Without buildup, what can you expect in the end? I refuse to let any of my… victims leave my presence disappointed."_

"_Mm, trust me Oogie, this girl's not disappointed." My legs wrapped around his bared waist, pulling him closer. "You're absolutely terrifying, and very talented with, ah, buildup."_

I snapped out of my reverie as I heard his scythe drag against the wooden floors, making a ghostly scuffle in the dead silence. I stood as I had been told, waiting limp in the doorway. When his deep chuckle echoed off the walls, it took all my willpower not to squirm. My legs threatened to melt when he began to speak an eerie tune we had learned from the townsfolk long ago.

"_Baby, baby, naughty baby; Hush, you squalling thing, I say."_

I reached to the depths of my powers and shrieked, my own blood threatening to curdle at the sound. As the doors flung open, I hid in the shadows of the doorway of the last room, observing the young men attempt to be brave.

Jimmy glanced to Kris, both wearing a look of pure terrified confusion. "The fuck was that?"

"I don't know man. Someone's got to be here messing with us. Probably Curtis being a smartass. Should go put his ass in place."

Jimmy's voice dropped to a whisper. "What about the girls? We can't leave them alone."

Kris muttered an agreement and both closed the doors to their respective rooms.

Sharpened nails scraped across the back bay window overlooking the thick garden below. _"Peace this moment, peace, or maybe; Bonaparte will pass this way."_

The voices behind the doors quieted down, and I stood beside them, gauging their reactions. Kris and Latoya had seemed to brush it off and resumed what they were doing. Jessica wasn't taking it very well, and each word of the old nursery rhyme terrified her more.

"_Baby, baby, he's a giant, Tall and black as Rouen steeple; And he breakfasts, dines, rely on't. Every day on naughty people."_

I felt chills run down my arms as I became entranced with his recital, almost forgetting to remain in character. I shrieked again, though this time stayed in place, making sure to catch the eye of the males while they looked on in terror.

Kris scoffed. "Some dumb bitch with a glowing eye trick." It was then he saw the bloodstains. "And look, fake blood. Goin' all out to scare people you don't know."

Jimmy held his friend back with a hand and left the safety of his room, creeping towards me. "Is that a costume, or are you really hurt lady?"

I only tilted my head in response and opened my mouth a few times, pretending to not be able to breathe.

As I expected, Jimmy ran forward to see if I was alright. He propped my weight up on his leg. "Are you alright? Who did this to you?"

I stopped my act immediately and grinned. "The Boogieman knows all."

"What?"

As a response I sank into the shadows, laughing hysterically. "Not just the Boogieman runs rampant at night!"

As if on cue he joined in, his voice a growling echo in the shadows of the walls. _"Baby, baby, if he hears you, As he gallops past the house; Limb from limb at once he'll tear you, Just as pussy tears a mouse."_

The girls ran into the hallway, their costumes in disarray. "What's going on Kris?" Latoya asked and gripped his arm in terror as I rose out of the shadows. "Holy fuck!"

Jessica screamed and I only laughed as someone else materialized behind them, large scythe in hand. "There are two creatures that go bump in the night, children."

"_And he'll beat you, beat you, beat you, and he'll beat you all the pap." _

They looked as if they didn't know what to do between screaming and running, making them stand perfectly still.

"_And he'll eat you, eat you, eat you; Every morsel snap-"_

I playfully growled and snapped my teeth at them to get them to back up-

"_-snap-"_

- right into his chest. They yelped and looked behind them, and they stood paralyzed in fear.

Pitch only took the opportunity to snap his fingers and grin, malice in his eyes, _"-snap."_

They gathered themselves and ran out the door screaming, tripping over themselves as they raced to get away.

I rose out of the shadows completely, holding on to my sides as I started laughing. It had been such a long time since I took part in such a thing, and I found I missed it dearly. I missed the companionship. It could have been the fear high, or something else, but I was starting to want to make things right again. To make it as it was as I had told him I wanted. He needed to change, yes, but so did I.

He stood by me as the front door slammed closed again and my laughing subsided to a thoughtful look. "Still say you don't need me to help?"

Before I gave myself a chance to second guess my thoughts I held on to his coat and leaned up to crash my lips to his. He seemed stunned for only a moment before he responded, pushing me back against the wall, making me wrap my arms around his neck.

He pulled back to kiss my neck. "I thought you would do something if anything happened you didn't want to happen."

"I want this."

He pushed me in to one of the abandoned bedrooms and hefted me on to the old bed. At once the coat that blended in to his skin came off and he knelt between my legs, pinning me down. "Do you really? Or will you take what I give you and run off with it again?"

I bit my lip as he ripped my shirt completely and he unhooked the material beneath, freeing his first prize. "I won't run this time, Oogie." I couldn't explain the electric shock that ran through my body as he played with my breasts, teasing the flesh. I sighed in content and he continued, seeming to approve of the answer.

"I should punish you for running off."

If it weren't for how much his eyes had changed, the mood would have been ruined entirely. He hadn't meant it in the harsh way he used to before we parted ways. It was a playful sort of dominance I used to love to play. "What is a fitful punishment, master?" I said with a sly grin.

He was thrown off for only a moment as I played our old game. He threw me for my own loop as I felt a tug on my choker. I at least called it a choker for appearances. In reality, what he had said was more appropriate. The skull charm was more of a tag, and the choker, a collar. I followed the way he pulled the shadow-formed lead as he laid back against the wall, bringing me to my knees. He pulled me closer, lips almost touching. He took my hand and put it to the edge of his pants. "You know what to do."

It had been a long time, but I still remembered how to do this. I tossed my loose garments to the floor and fumbled over the fastening of his pants, relishing the sight of him pulling his stomach in a bit to give me more room. I trailed my lips against his ashen skin as I undid the fastening, giving him some buildup of my own. I reached in the slacks and trailed my fingers against his silky hard cock, feeling him twitch and hiss as he ran a hand over my chest. I loosened the cloth around him and pulled him from his pants, watching his back arch ever so slightly.

His hand wound itself in my hair as I trailed my tongue around his tip, still tantalized by the equally ashen skin after all these centuries. How was it he could be so… dead looking, and still have blood flow? I heard a soft groan of pleasure and smiled into his silky flesh before using my tongue to pull it between my lips. This time he hissed and the grip tightened, only leaving me pleasantly light-headed. "Mm, just like that…"

I held him in place with one hand, using the other to twist against my alternating motions. It was flattering to know he still reacted to my touch as he used to, that I hadn't forgotten how to please him. I could tell how long it had been by how he twitched minutely, which made me wonder dirty things. Things which, in my peak of the fear high, I voiced openly. I pulled off him, placing a long lick under his shaft. "How long did you have to please yourself for?"

"Too long." He was under the effects as well, and I knew his filter was gone, just as mine was.

"How often?"

"Too often." He glared at me as I pulled off completely, teasing the hardened flesh more than pleasing it. He groaned and curled his lip as I trailed my finger over his tip. "Last night."

When had he done so? Before I checked in on him, or after? From his frustrated mumbles that I had heard, I was leaning more towards after. Who had he been thinking of when he brought himself to his peak? "What made your blood boil, Oogie?" I leaned forward and took him in my mouth again.

"I planned to see you. Mm, I was going to find you tonight and hope the night went this way. Not just physically."

I continued to coax him closer to his climax, but he pulled me off as his breathing became ragged. He made me kneel before him so he could loosen the bindings on my own pants. I sucked in a sharp breath of my own as his lips met my throat again and his teeth found purchase in my skin. He teased the flesh while he shifted the pants down my hips. His hands nudged my shoulders gently, letting me lie on my back. My heart began to pound as his fingers teased the juncture of my hips, making me clench my eyes closed immediately against the pleasure. Gods above, how had I gone so long without feeling the talents hidden in his fingers? I shifted out of my pants and let my legs part for him.

He surprised me by taking the invitation, kneeling between my legs and lowering himself to kiss down my torso, taking his sweet, torturous time in getting back to where I wanted him most. If it bothered him that we were in an old abandoned house instead of his elaborate chambers he said nothing. He had usually accepted what I originally thought to be unusual requests anyway. All thoughts on anything else left my mind as his tongue ran over my slit, and his purr of satisfaction made my body tingle. He did it again, using two fingers to hold his second prize open to him. With his other hand he slowly slipped his finger inside me, pushing in a second when he felt how slick I was.

It wasn't enough, and he seemed to know it. He flicked his tongue over my clit as his fingers made a curling motion in me, hitting something else entirely. I ran my hands through his hair and held on to it, tugging as he used to love. His growling response told me he still did. He became relentless with both motions, sending my head reeling. I mewled against his touch, feeling my limit hitting. "Mm, Oogie, it's too good."

He gave his tongue a quick break, never stopping his finger's strokes. "Your master wants to see you come. It's been far too long…"

How was I to say otherwise? I never wanted him to stop. I twitched as he latched on to my clit again, pulling it between his teeth gently and applying pressure. "Oh gods, Oogie! Don't stop!" He brought me to the brink and sent me over with two different waves of pleasure merging to make one simultaneous climax that made me scream for him and arch my back. I was given no chance to calm down before he pulled me forward and wrapped my legs around his waist so he could slide himself slowly between my folds.

My vision went white for a moment as an aftershock of my climax rocked my body, only made worse as he had to try a few times to slip all the way inside. Once he filled me up completely he stopped, and I couldn't look away from his pale, haunting eyes. I couldn't help it as I leaned up and kissed him, and he responded in turn, keeping completely still as I grew used to him again. I prayed to all the powers above that he would never be what he was. I couldn't stand to be away from this, and living knowing he was out there somewhere was not living anymore.

Even so, I just… I couldn't trust him anymore. Not fully. We both let out heavy breaths through our noses as he started to move, feeling too good to break apart. One of his hands held on to my hip while the other played with my breasts, heightening my senses. He kept a gentle pace for awhile, longer than I thought he ever would. The sweet nothings of the cemetery were replaced with sighs, gasps, screams, and moans. I found my hands roaming all over his body, my legs resting against his still clothed limbs. I lifted my hips and he slipped deeper in, letting me hear his moan of satisfaction.

It seemed to be his undoing. He picked up his pace, unable to keep his gentle motions. His thrusts became rough, animalistic, just as I loved in the past. Immediately the sensations rose in my gut and my nails bit into his back as I moaned into his skin. When my climax hit me again I heard him hiss as I clenched down on him, my nails digging trenches in his flesh. He cursed and pulled out, spilling on to the sheets beside us with a long satisfied groan, both our breathing heavy and ragged.

The lead of my collar vanished and he laid back on the other side of the bed, away from the newly made stain, trying to catch his breath. He motioned for me to join him and I laid my head on his bare chest, listening to his erratic heartbeat while my own tried to calm down. I waited for his heart rate to return to normal, running a finger around a scar on his chest while he shifted so I could use his shoulder instead. He wrapped his arm over my shoulders and I heard his pace regulate. "Pitch?"

"What?"

"Can we ever go back to how it was? Before everything went to shit, obviously."

He shrugged. "It depends. Will you stop running off?"

I nodded. I had forgotten how well we worked together when nothing was going wrong, and I missed the company. I missed going with him on nightmare runs, I missed the banter, the lessons, not sleeping alone. He wasn't losing his mind as he once was, and he wasn't being serious with his threats. "I'm not going to run. You deserved the first one though."

He rolled his eyes. "I know I did, but I did not deserve the second one. I've been through hell, Hana, trying to regain my title, trying to be believed in again, all to remember who I was before those wretched Guardians took over. Change does not come within a moment. It's been a progress over the past seven months as I took hold of my sanity again."

"I just don't want to have to fight back next time."

"There won't be a next time. A few snaps here and there, yes, but nothing more."

If he was sincere, I couldn't tell, but I still didn't really trust him fully. How could I? "I want to stay in my tower."

"If that is what you wish."

"I-I want to take it slower this time."

"We've fucked both times we've seen each other this past year. How is that slow?"

I shoved at his shoulder. "With everything else. Besides, the Guardians want you to back off the children yet. They probably only gave you a pass this long due to Halloween. If they find out we've made amends, that could be bad for both of us."

He frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Jack already came to me to look for you, and that was with them knowing we had split centuries before, before they knew I helped you regain your center. If they know anything has returned to how it was, they could very well use me to make you listen."

He scoffed. "They wouldn't do that."

"Bunny would."

"Bunny is an Aussie that talks a big game."

"Even so, I don't want to risk it. For now, we stay in our own lairs."

He arched a brow. "You do realize I won't stop what I'm doing."

"I wouldn't ask you to." I grinned and reached up to bite his ear. "We were created to oppose them."

"Other way around, Sweetheart."

"Regardless, we were all created for balance. Note that it took four of them to balance one of you."

"And one more of them to balance you."

I only bit him again, this time harder. "I've had less practice than you, old man. Shut it." I trailed kisses along his jaw line, tracing his lips with my fingers. "They need us, you, just as we need them. Give the humans too much chaos, they all die and we lose our purpose." I replaced my fingers with my lips, catching his in a fast peck. "Give humans too much joy and hope, and they will have no fear."

He leaned up and caught my lips again, drawing out the kiss. I shifted them open and he accepted the offer, making his tongue dance with mine. My fingers trailed along the scar on his chest, feeling a shiver run through his body. He only slightly pulled away. "You do believe me when I say I am trying to keep the balance, right?"

It took me a moment but I nodded. I felt the tugs of exhaustion catch up to me. He helped me up and I started to gather what was left of my clothes while he fixed his. I frowned at the torn shirt. "I liked this one."

"You were due for a new one." Once both dressed, me as much as I could be, we left the house and summoned the horses, who had found each other again it seemed since they ran up from the same place instead of materialized as they usually did.

I couldn't stop my grin. "It seems they're getting along well."

"So it would seem." He watched as I pulled myself on Hessian's back, gripping his reins hard. "I am behaving, you know that."

I let a laugh slip. "I know you are, Oogie. Keep it that way." With a snap of Hessian's reins I was in the air, taking the fastest route I knew back to my tower where I could hide away underground. Little did I know that, while he would behave himself as promised, another forgotten figure refused to make such a promise.

That little bastard almost got Pitch killed, and almost lost us Christmas.


	8. Chapter 8

8.

For a month and a half, things remained the same. He would either retire to my tower when the sun began to rise, or I would stay in his lair. Onyx and Hessian also seemed to be getting on well. The globe in my tower continued to glow brightly through the nights, much to the annoyance of the Guardians. Since we still were keeping the balance, they could do nothing about it.

He kept to his word and behaved himself. After learning more about his origins, I knew it was hard for him to do so. He still scared anyone he could, but at least he wasn't turning them into fearlings like he had in the past. When I learned that he had initially been a good man, tricked by the fearlings of old and possessed by thousands of them, I understood why he was the way he was. I'd catch him awake some days, his gaze taken by a single gold locket. I never asked to look inside, nor wanted to know why he would look so sad when he held it. He deserved to keep secrets of his past, just as we all did.

Christmas was fast approaching, a time of the year that was supposed to be filled with miracles and joy. I never interfered with the other's days, just as they never interfered with mine. That didn't stop Pitch from wanting to have a little fun. I had to use my best, ah, influential talents, to keep him from doing anything more than spread his Nightmares. I had let him up to redress only after he grudgingly promised to not ruin the buildup to North's one night a year.

I sat in an oval chair on the wooden ground floor, absentmindedly petting one of my Shadow Bats as I stared at the globe. I had seen it flicker earlier, taking my attention. It happened again and I scrambled to my feet, ignoring the squeak of the Bat as it was rudely woken by landing on the floor. With the help of Wind I leapt up to the New England area and watched the lights begin to pulse. "Oh no, Oogie don't do this…" I rushed over to my workstation below and put a crystal sphere on the holder. The shadows inside only gave way to darkness, and I could make out a few lumps in the snow. I ran my hand over it again to get it closer, and I almost knocked it out of the holder as I realized what the lumps were.

I would have fallen backwards if Hessian hadn't appeared behind me, using his side to hold me up. He pressed against my mind and I almost forgot how to link with him. The lumps were dismembered teenagers, and their blood was seeping into the snow. I felt sick and turned my gaze away.

"_He wouldn't do this."_

"I-I know. It's not his calling."

I watched the globe closely for a week, never mentioning what I saw in the sphere when he was around. He'd leave every night and I'd watch the globe, my tension mounting as the lights glowed brighter. What was making everyone so scared? I hadn't seen an area so lit up in almost three hundred years.

On the tenth day, four days before Christmas, I insisted I go out in the field with him. When asked why, I merely told him I was bored of playing the role of a housewife, never leaving the tower due to a lack of anything better to do. He made no indication that he noticed the lights, and agreed that I could come with him. The whole night as we poisoned the dreams of adults and children alike, I kept my eyes open, looking for anything other than us, Tooth's fairies, and Sandy's Dreamsand wandering around. I was so preoccupied I didn't take into consideration how much fear I was putting into a woman's dream, and ended up giving her a night terror she couldn't wake from.

He noticed however and corrected my mistake, shifting the sands to that of one of his Nightmares. "You're distracted tonight," he muttered as the small horse ran rampant over the woman. Her cries had died down, but her face was still contorted in a form of pain.

"Something is wrong," I confessed, stroking the 'mare as it came closer.

I didn't expect him to nod. "The lights. They've been brighter."

"I was wondering if you'd noticed." The 'mare ran over my shoulders and nuzzled me before returning to its job. "What is it?"

He shook his head, catching my gaze. "I'm not sure. It isn't my doing; I've been keeping my word."

"I believe you." We left the house through the shadows, standing on the roof of the apartment building, looking down at Onyx and Hessian as they attempted to graze in the snow-covered dark grass. "Should we be worried?"

"Doubtful."

"This thing is killing people. Oogie, we don't kill."

"We don't. This thing obviously does." He made me look up at him. "If it becomes a threat to us, we'll do something about it. Until then, there is not much we can do." Both our eyes widened as a rope of golden sand encased his wrist for a whole second before he was yanked back and over the side of the building, a harsh thud sounding out a moment later.

I clasped my hands to my mouth to cover a yelp of surprise and rushed to the side, seeing the Guardians advancing on him as he shook his head to clear it. Once he took in his surroundings he backed into the wall, a hand held up in defense.

North was the first to advance on him, lifting him up by his throat and shoving one of his swords to his chest. "What have you done, Pitch?! Children are dying!"

"I doubt he cares, North," Bunny said, his boomerangs trained on his target. "I knew we should have gone after him and killed him when we had the chance."

I leapt down from the building, stumbling a bit as I landed, and ran up to them. "Wait, North, put him down!"

The large Russian only turned his sneer to me. "Watch yourself, Hana. You don't want to protect a monster like this one."

"Who else would be low enough to kill to regain his power?" Bunny added.

I looked at each of them, entirely powerless. Tooth tried to put a comforting hand on my shoulder but I brushed her off, looking to Jack. He only turned away. His gaze said there was nothing he could do.

Pitch curled his lip. "Do you honestly think I'd waste my time killing these pathetic wretches?"

"You've done it before, who is to say you won't again?" North said, and I could see a trickle of blood run down Pitch's chest.

He hadn't flinched. "I haven't. Something is wrong, I will agree with you for that reason only. I am not the one leaving parents childless overnight."

I ran up to North and held on to the arm pushing the sword into his skin. "Please North. He's telling the truth."

The large man kept his gaze forward. "I see you and your little Spirit are doing well again."

"It's none of your damn business, North. Now let me go." He flinched as North's hold on his throat tightened.

"That's enough North." I looked behind me, seeing Jack stand there. "If he is telling the truth, we're wasting time with him."

"And if he's lying, we have him where we want him," North shot back.

"North, please listen to me," I tried again. "I know it's very close to your day, and you care immensely for your wards, but you have the wrong man. If you don't believe him, believe me."

"And why should I believe a woman who is just as evil as him?"

I took my hands back as if I had been slapped and Tooth reprimanded him. I had known they didn't approve of my holiday and what I did, but I didn't know they thought I was… evil.

A scream rang out a few blocks down, making us all jump. The others ran towards it, leaving me alone with North and Pitch. The Russian growled and dropped him to the ground. "We finish this after. I swear if I find one of your creatures, I will kill you myself."

He took off after the others and I knelt by Pitch's side to check the wound on his chest. The Boogieman only looked horribly confused as he touched the blood, looking at it as if he wanted to make sure it was real.

"We should help them," I muttered.

He clenched his fingers into a fist and stood again. "Why? So they can finally stab me through and then come after you? I'll have nothing to do with it."

I didn't rise. I only looked down the road. "Or you can clear your name once and for all."

"There is nothing you can say to the man to make him think otherwise. I should kill him myself for what he said."

"Which fixes nothing." I stood and summoned my small twin scythes. "Stay behind if you want, but I'm helping them." I didn't wait to see if he was following. I ran in the direction of the others, hearing the sound of fighting ensue. I turned a corner, facing the edge of thick woods, and stopped in my tracks as my weapons almost slipped from my grasp. Before my eyes, the guardians were fighting three odd human-like creatures, with goat heads and legs, but with the torso of a man. I heard running behind me and knew he had finally chosen to help. I darted forward as another of the creatures emerged from the woods, a massive hammer held over its head, heading right for Tooth.

I crossed the blades in front of me and extended my arms, effectively slicing the arm off the creature. It let out such a howl, a high pitched sound similar to a train whistle as it turned on me, its horns lowered to strike. It leapt forward with such surprising speed I barely had time to dodge out of the way. The creature immediately changed its course and its horns grazed my belly as I dodged it again. Before it could attack again, a boomerang caught its attention long enough for me to stab it through the spine with my small scythes.

Bunny came out from nowhere, delivering a killing blow to the creature's head, making its neck snap. I leaned forward on my knees, breathing heavy. "You ripper, Hana?"

"Yeah, just need to catch my breath." I looked up just as one of the creatures was about to ram into North from behind. Before I could shout out a warning, a massive scythe swept through it, severing the beast in two. I saw Pitch give North a smug grin before all of our gazes fell to the remaining creature, now being frozen in place by Jack as Sandy broke the frozen thing into shards with his whips.

A chuckle off to our side made us all stand straight, weapons at the ready. "You are impressive. I see I will have some obstacles in my way." Whoever was talking, we couldn't find him. Every direction we looked was clear. As I looked, I saw the remains of a girl laying wide-eyed in the snow, no life in her eyes at all and blood pooling around her body.

"Show yourself!" North shouted out, clapping his swords together.

The chuckle rang out again. "Now now, patience old man. You'll get what you desire." A figure emerged from the shadows, and I immediately took in the sight of massive horns curled backward from his head. He had a hand held up in a careless manner, letting us see his curved talons of nails. As he came closer, I heard his heavy boots crunch through the snow Jack had laid just this morning. His mannerisms alone, the pace of his steps, were making me nervous.

A sudden sharp pain on my belly reminded me I was in fact wounded, and I placed my hand over the injury, startled to feel so much warm liquid. Strong, slender hands laid on my shoulders, keeping my focus off the injury.

"Who are you?" Bunny demanded, holding his boomerang at the ready.

The darkness still kept the fine details from us, but I could clearly see light reflecting off his teeth as he grinned. "I am known as many things, 'The Son of the Morning', 'The Lightbringer'." Behind him, the light was blocked out as wings unfurled form his back and he bowed. In an instant, he was gone again, but his voice rang out in an echo, leaving us with a chilling fact. "But you may call me Lucifer."


	9. Chapter 9

I've put up a temporary image of Hana up on my bio page. I only say temp because I've been sketching her a lot lately, so that may not be her final image, but it is her final design.

* * *

9.

"Lucifer? _The _Lucifer?" Jack paced in front of us in the Pole as Tooth helped clean and heal my wound. It wasn't as deep as I first thought; it only bled more than expected.

I hissed as she ran a salve over my stomach. "Jack, stop pacing," I said through clenched teeth. "You're making me nervous."

"But it's Lucifer. How is that even possible?" He looked in the direction of North and the others as they each attempted to locate more information through the old books.

I shook my head, flinching as the sting slowly abated while she bound the wound. "He was a creature created to put fear in all sinners, according to the Christian scriptures. He would exist just as we would." I propped myself up on the lounge, sucking in a sharp breath as the wound twitched.

"But what does he want?" Tooth asked, her small trio of fairies squeaking in unison.

"Probably… probably what a few of us want." I cast my gaze to the others, watching Pitch cooperating for once. "To be remembered."

"Kinda hard to forget someone like Lucifer, Hana," Jack said, still pacing. "There is no other being more feared than him."

"Was," I corrected, still feeling uneasy at his strides. "Think over a century ago and beyond. He was the ultimate form of sin, of bad things in the Christian ways. Look around Jack, we're in New England. There was nothing but Christians on this soil for so long. It was only until recently that humans started to question the scriptures, and, well, you know what happens when people stop believing in you."

"But killing people to announce you've grown enough to strike?"

I stood with a grimace. "It is the Devil we're talking about." I jumped as a loud bang sounded from the large table in front of us, and I looked up to see Pitch glaring at North.

"I'd very well appreciate it if you would stop insinuating I had anything to do with this, North!"

"Who else would have a hand in something like this?" The Russian shouted back, stabbing one of his swords into the table.

"I didn't need anyone's help to do what I did in the past, why would someone like him?"

"We let you live, we allowed you to keep regaining your believers only because something held you in check." He pointed a threatening finger at him. "Look what happens not a year later!"

"North!" Bunny stood between them, forcing them to only glare at each other while Sandy frantically signaled behind them.

I tried to quickly get to the top of the stairs but had to lean against the top post as I made it to the top, my hand over my wound. "What have you figured out?"

"Not much," Pitch answered, sifting through scattered pages. "Only what we've known all along, from what was written in the scriptures."

"That he was a fallen angel, cast out for wanting things to change," Bunny agreed, tapping a particular page. "He's been used as an icon to terrify anyone into living a life free of sin."

"For longest time, he was being feared more than Pitch." North gestured to the man in question. "You only took naughty children according to their stories, and struck fear in the hearts of all."

"He would judge the souls of the dead and torment them, corrupting them into demons," Pitch added. "To make sure he would get his souls, he would deliver temptations to the humans. Those creatures being what they are always gave in without a fight." He glared at North again. "However I don't know why he is striking back now after all these years that the fear of him has been reduced to nothing."

"Why did you strike when you did?" Bunny asked.

"Bunny!" Tooth shouted and flitted over to slap his shoulder.

"He has point," North said. "So, what was it?"

I could see him fighting against his anger, resisting the temptation to sever their heads from their bodies. He was also fighting something else. I saw him glance at me for only a brief second before he curled his lip. "It was a calculated decision to strike when I did. I had perfected my Nightmares, my strongest weapon against your light. I saw no chance of failure when I did." His eyes traveled behind me for another moment. I followed his brief gaze and saw he had looked to Jack. "There are always snags in the most well thought out plans it would seem."

"So then he's thought this through," I offered, sifting through some of the discarded pages. "He thinks he has little to no disadvantage."

"He doesn't. The little buggers can't help this time," Bunny said. "He's threatening more than their memories, their hopes and dreams. He means to wipe out the sinners." He looked down at the papers. "This isn't about wanting to be remembered. This is about being a symbol of something beyond what we are. A symbol of death, of corruption."

I glanced out the windows, seeing the sun begin to rise. "How do we stop him?"

"We don't know. This is a very powerful being, Hana," Bunny said as the others returned to the pages. "At least he was when he was more than just a threat that a person will burn for eternity. If he can invoke enough people into fearing his name…"

I nodded. He didn't have to say it. We all knew the utmost consequences if Lucifer was allowed to regain his standing. They were right to fear him. When Pitch attempted to regain his old life, he did so by manipulating the Dreamsand, and they were lucky it was only that. If he was really on top of his game, if he had the power to, he could have turned the children into fearlings to do his bidding as he had done in the past. At least with the corrupted Dreamsand, and for what he represented, the children could help bring Sandy back, the one being Pitch really regarded with trepidation.

But, his goal was only to leave the world in darkness, to smother it with terror so thick he would become the most powerful creature around once again, and the plan was formulated in his past state of mind. This man, he wanted the sinners to pay with their lives. So far, he had not targeted children. Not yet, anyway. He couldn't. Children are innocent until a certain age. The death of the innocent was not his call. According to the Christian scriptures, it was the other man's call to take the innocent away.

"We should rest while we can," North said, taking his sword from the table and replacing it in its holster. He cast his gaze to me. "You can stay below in the workshop. There's a quiet room near my office you can use."

"I can go home—"

"Not with gash in stomach. Ride home would only irritate and reopen it."

I couldn't fight the logic as the others departed to their respective homes, agreeing to meet in a certain spot the next day. I memorized the directions given to me and I took to the stairs, not able to hide a flinch as my wound was jostled. I almost made it to the elevators on my own before I had to lean against the wall, arm clasped over the bindings. I started seeing double, and felt my limbs shake out of their control. I pushed off from the wall and felt my knees buckle immediately, though strong dark-clothed arms kept me upright.

"Easy. You should have waited."

"I thought you went home with the others."

"Because I would have left you here, wounded and alone, in the Pole." He scoffed at the idea and rolled his pale eyes. "He's telling the truth though. Your injury needs time to heal."

"I-I'm fine, Oogie. Really."

"You've never been a talented liar." He helped me the rest of the way to the spare room, taking care to not aggravate the gash. It would continue to close up as I slept, but until then, it only stung something fierce.

"Do you trust them?"

"Not at all." He sat me on the bed and moved to close the heavy red curtains to block out the approaching sunlight. "However, this is not something we're used to. This is a being that doesn't care who you are, human or otherwise. So long as you are guilty of sin, he will come for your soul. In this case, we are all threatened."

I stood for only a moment to draw back the heavy blankets. I kicked off my boots and stared at the ground, thoughts floating around in my head as I felt the bed dip behind me and his weight pressed into my back. "I'm not… I'm not evil, am I?"

He laughed into the skin of my neck. "No, my dear. You don't have it in you to be evil. Not entirely."

I wasn't sure if I should have been flattered or insulted. I was too exhausted, in too much pain to fight it.

"Don't fight what is in your nature. It will do no good to you in the long run. Accept what has been dealt to you." His voice went quiet. "Or you'll go mad trying to remember who you are."

I nodded and gingerly laid down, pulling the blankets over my frame and relishing the instant warmth. A moment after he slipped in behind me, and I felt his bare skin run over what I had exposed. "If I'm not evil, what am I? A good person does not feel pleasure when terrifying others. A good person doesn't convert someone's dreams into Nightmares."

He was silent for a moment, as if choosing his words carefully. "You are not a good person, nor are you evil. Your center prevents you from slipping too far into the darkness."

I hadn't even thought of my center. The ability to see beauty in everything. I had seen no beauty in the monster from before.

"Don't let the demons of the past eat you alive."

"As you are allowing them to do to you?"

He went silent for a moment, his hand motionless. "You have different demons than I. I know how to deal with them, how to keep them at bay."

I rolled my eyes, knowing he'd be unable to see. "Then why is it I see you staring at that locket when you believe I'm asleep?"

I felt him stiffen behind me. "Leave it alone."

The sharp tone of his voice made me follow that order. I fell silent, listening to the crackling of the fire burning in a small pit in the far corner of the room. I felt a little disappointed, since he couldn't seem to trust me with everything. If he had something to protect so strongly, it wasn't my place to pry. There were other more pressing matters at hand to worry about.

As I felt myself drifting off, he broke the silence. "My daughter."

That immediately got my attention as my blood ran cold and I turned to look at him, unable to believe he had said that. "You have a daughter?" Which meant he had a wife.

"Had a daughter. Before…" He shook his head and sat up, staring at the fire. "The locket is all I have left." He laughed a bit. "Material-wise anyway."

I sat up with him and accepted his invitation to lay against the crook of his shoulder. "Is she all you had?"

"Yes."

"Tell me about her."

He shook his head. "You need to sleep."

"There is plenty of time for me to sleep yet."

He sighed but gave me a tired smile. "You've spent too much time with me. You're becoming stubborn as ever." Despite his words, he ended up caving, telling me stories well into the morning, stories I dare not repeat. Some memories are meant to be kept precious.

When he was like this, I could almost forget the horrible deeds he had done, that he was a creature to be feared. I could let myself see the rare times he wasn't surrounded in an aura of darkness. I alone could see him come undone and be there to help him find himself, and he was the only one capable of doing the same for me. I don't know how it worked, but it did, and I was glad we had made amends. I don't think I could have faced what was out there if we were still not speaking.

I'm not sure when we slipped into sleep. One minute I was listening to his stories and the next we were being startled awake by a heavy knock on the door.

It was time to work.


	10. Chapter 10

I will apologize in advance if this becomes offensive to anyone of any religious background. Try to take this with an open mind.

* * *

10.

I took the bindings off, examining my flesh. The wound had closed, leaving a nasty pale scar in its wake. I shifted off the bed and stood in front of the full-length mirror, flinching at the sight. I closed my eyes and ran a hand over the raised flesh.

A soft weight appeared behind me and a hand took mine, the fingers slipping between my own to touch the scar tissue. "It could have been much worse."

It could have been, yes. That fact alone made me feel sick. I shivered as he traced the diagonal scar, starting at my ribcage, slowly ending in the dip of my left hip. Despite the times, I let out a soft chuckle and chanced a glance to him. "What would you say if I told you we should defile North's bed?"

I made him laugh at least. "At any other time I'd pin you down and make you scream for me." He made me turn to look at him. "However, this is still his home. He'd have all the rights to walk in and interrupt. I'd really hate to have to kill him."

"Mm, that would be a shame." I ran my hands up his clothed chest and put them around his neck. "What about after this?"

"After this?" He gave a growl of a laugh and leaned to my ear, his voice dripping lust. "After this I plan to make you mine on any surface of my choosing, hard and precise, until you beg me to stop."

I could play his game. I bit his ear gently, and ran my tongue over the soft flesh before pulling back slightly. "Who says I'll beg for that, my master?" I could feel him tense up and I took the opportunity to step away. "Also, thank you for last night."

I saw his gaze drop away. "Do know that if you repeat any of it—"

"Why would I?" I wasn't allowed to say anything more as the door opened, showing Jack on the other side. "They're ready?"

He nodded with a grin. "I hope you don't mind sleigh rides."

* * *

I thought I wouldn't mind a little trip in Santa's Sleigh. I was horribly wrong. North was more than a madman with swords and a passion for cookies. He was a madman with a team of edgy reindeer and a deathtrap sled. I joined Bunny in a corner, fighting to keep my stomach steady.

All the while he laughed at our misfortune and spurned the creatures on. I couldn't understand how Jack and Sandy seemed to love the wild trip. The whole time, Tooth was telling us of what her fairies had gathered as they worked. During the course of the day, the body had been discovered, leaving the death count at seventeen, all young adults.

"Most important is how he is doing it," she continued as North steadied out the sleigh, making it a little easier on my stomach. "The girl from last night was found to have a large amount of drugs in her blood. My fairies did more digging and found she did have a problem with it."

She went through the list. A young gambler died from suffocation; he choked on a pair of dice and more were found in his gut. A girl with a promiscuous life was found cut up, mutilated to spoil her apparent beauty. A man of 23 with a history of anger issues shot his wife and then himself. A girl drowned in her tub face down. A boy was found in pieces, burger wrappers discarded around him and an empty bottle of bleach nearby.

All of them looked like suicides.

"He's making the sinners commit the ultimate sin," Pitch muttered, putting it together. "It is said if you commit suicide, your soul is not judged. It is sent straight to Lucifer."

"It's a brilliant plan," I said with a grimace, holding on to the edge of the sleigh as I held myself up, still a little dizzy. "What was their religion by the way?"

"Mainly Christian or Catholic," Tooth answered.

"Fantastic. That explains the lights."

Bunny frowned. "The lights of the Fear Globe?"

I nodded. "I've been watching them almost two weeks now. The lights are showing brighter in that bible belt. With how these people are dying, it would of course send these people in a religious frenzy, especially the ones closest to the victims. If he can make it believable that sinners are being damned by Lucifer in a coming apocalypse, he can regain his power. Not as much as a hundred years ago, but he can start convincing them something is happening."

"People watch a lot of apocalyptic themed things now. It seems to be a popular topic. To make it seem real in a time of paranoia—"

"It means he picked very good time to strike," North said from his reins, and Sandy nodded in agreement.

Something like this shouldn't have been our job. We were around for the emotions of humans, not for their life choices. That was a totally different lore sector. However, if anyone else were to do anything about it, they would have by now. What I had come to learn about that vague part of lore and stories was that the Creator… didn't seem to care about his creation. Not enough to interfere besides taking away the innocents.

I had died in 1552. I knew about Christianity, and I knew what fears were shoved down the throats of others. I knew the horror stories told to make us believe, to make us fear the Devil. However, they never told us why. And back then, if you questioned the good book, you were flogged.

Or hung as a witch.

My hand went to my collar, over the divots in my skin that would never go away. Only one person seemed to notice, and he discreetly nudged my side with his black clothed leg.

Back then, we were taught only to read the bible if you were a woman. That was all you needed to know how to read. Even though I disregarded that and read my father's books, I knew that from the scriptures, Lucifer was a powerful being, cast out by God. And, as I had said in the past, good needs evil to survive. "How do we stop him?"

Bunny shook his head as he finally sat up straight. "We're not sure. But we have to slow him down."

I nodded. The balance could not handle a threat like this. Something needed to be done before more died. Before anything else happened during a time that was supposed to be left to miracles.

It was one thing we needed dearly.


	11. Chapter 11

11.

The fear was mounting in a small town in Virginia. However, it was hitting several different locations, where the "suicides" were happening. Due to that we decided to split up and try to see what we could find.

I wandered past a church, frowning as I saw scared humans file inside. I turned my gaze closer, seeing the Nativity Scene lit up by a lawn spot light. The story behind it was creative, despite the holes. The religious at least thought they had it all figured out, and many were satisfied with it.

If only I could be that satisfied with my own life, as if I had everything figured out.

I knelt in the snow before the scene, gazing at the child this whole thing was for, in their sense of the holiday. I found it a little humorous that so many holidays were celebrated in this little human's name, yet the other side of the coin was associated with my day. With everything I stood for.

Did that make me evil? Did that make me just as bad as him? I shook my head, clearing it. It was nonsense.

"It's amazing, the power of a story," a male voice carelessly said behind me.

I shot to my feet, scythes in hand. With the help of the moonlight reflecting off the snow I could finally see his basic features. His long red coat fell over heavy boots that could easily do damage on their own. His teeth glowed in the light, framed by a nasty smile.

I gripped my scythes to steady myself. "You don't need to do this, Lucifer."

He tilted his head. "I know I don't."

That threw me off. "Then why?" I held my breath, hoping he wouldn't attack. Even if I could glean information from him, it would be progress.

He folded his hands behind his back. "As you know, humans tell stories of things their simple minds can't comprehend, if their thoughts don't travel to murder first." He shrugged. "It was only a matter of time before stories of my own would be told."

"And the other guy?"

"Is a self-absorbed prick."

I looked at him in curiosity, lowering my weapons.

Lucifer sighed and shifted slightly. "I only did my job for a very long time. I test temptation, to provide trials to see where a soul would go to rest." He shrugged again. "True there were many that required more bloodshed, but a job is a job."

"Don't lie. You enjoyed it."

He only grinned again. "You enjoy the terror in all, showing others their darkest moments."

My nerves gave a sharp jolt. "I'm not like you."

"No? I would believe you and your boyfriend were, considering your… talents."

I pointed one of my scythes at him as he took a step forward. "We don't kill the humans! Why do these people need to die?"

"Need to?" A laugh escaped him. "My dear, they want to die. Each of those people wanted it. I only nudged them over that line of doubt."

"The blood is on your hands."

His long tongue escaped his lips and ran over his fingers. "And it's quite exquisite."

My anger snapped and I leapt forward, ready to strike him down. He summoned a spear and held off my attacks. "Why are you doing this?"

He caught both my scythes and threw me off into the snow. My weapons flew from my hands. "I really need a reason to want my power?" He caught me by surprise as he phase shifted directly over me, putting a boot to my chest. "This is 2012, dear. Not 1812. I am being written off as just a story with the introduction of the internet, with the introduction of curiosity and acceptance."

A shuffle in the snow off to my side made me snap my head in its direction, but I saw nothing. My heart began to race as I tried to struggle, helplessly scratching at his thick leather boots.

"People were flogged for questioning my existence, for questioning their town leaders." He pressed down a little harder and grinned. "Some were even hung for their disobedience. Why don't you tell me about your trial, Witch?"

I stopped clawing at his boots in an instant, frozen with shock. _"For crimes against the village, I sentence you to be hung by the neck until dead."_ A phantom of a whisper tickled my ear. _"You'll be the example for all who question our Lord."_

"You'd know all about defiance, wouldn't you Hana? Or should I say, Serah?" He chuckled and leaned closer, putting more weight on my chest. It was getting hard to breathe. "There's a bit of irony in that, isn't there?"

I looked at him in question, still unable to pinpoint the shifting of the snow.

"The meaning of your name. 'Morning star'." He grinned at me. "And I am the Son of the Morning. A fitting match, wouldn't you say?"

I flinched in pain as the pressure on my chest built, and a sharp cry left my throat.

"You have such guilt in your soul. I can almost taste it." He hummed in amusement. "It's the sweetest of all human emotions. Guilt, sorrow, desperation."

A twig snapped to my right and I came face to face with the largest snake I had ever seen. A shriek caught in my throat as I didn't have the chest capacity to scream properly. I hated the pitiful whimpers that escaped me as I tried in vain to shuffle away from the green snake.

Lucifer only laughed at my attempts. "Anacondas on their own are harmless. Their bites only hurt for a moment. Until, of course, they use their bodies to crush your entire body." He gestured to the bobbing creature, standing quite tall on its own. "These beauties can get over twenty-two feet long, isn't that incredible?" He gestured to it and it came closer, making my hands claw uselessly at his coat. "For my use, I gave their bite something extra, and allowed them a certain other food source."

He didn't bother to explain what. He wasn't that sort of man. The snake sank its fangs in my arm and I did whatever sound I could in pain, in desperation, in panic. It was painful. Sharp needle-point teeth, dozens of them slipped into my flesh, and I felt it probe for my darkest secrets, unlocking them and bringing them to the surface.

I panicked.

It only bit harder.

Lucifer laughed as the snake continued bringing my horrors to my eyes again. "They have quite an appetite for anxiety. It'll come on slowly for the first hour, yes, but after hour eight…" He chuckled and moved off my chest. "After hour eight, your soul is mine. The guilt, the sorrow, it will leave you with nightmares so horrifying you will commit the ultimate sin, and give yourself freely to me."

The fangs slipped out of my arm, but the panic still remained. My heart pounded against my chest, and my breath came out in short bursts. As I looked through my haze, he and the snake were both gone, leaving me alone in the quiet woods off to the side of the church.

The cold bit into my skin, calming me down, reminding me I was still alive. I rolled over on to my side and threw up bile, the only thing I could release. My body shook uncontrollably and I broke down. My darkest fears were repeating themselves in my mind. I was alone. I was alone through everything. I would always be alone.

I could hear nothing but falling snow for the longest time. Falling snow, wind blowing through the naked trees, and my heavy breathing. For a moment I thought I heard someone calling me, but it was faint, and my mind was set on telling me I was alone as my sight faded to black.

"_You will be the example for all who question our Lord."_

"_Don't listen to it, Hana."_

_You're all alone. There is no one that will care for an evil witch._

"_Don't listen."_

_Your guilt is all real. You did this to yourself._

"_You're not alone. Don't listen to it. Listen to my voice, Hana. You're not alone."_

_Paul was right to turn you in, you whore. What would you have turned into? _

Through the tumbling darkness I saw a light and ran towards it. Once inside the small beacon I looked behind me to see a door. I pulled it closed and locked the old rusty latch. The memories beat against the wood, making me jump and cry out at each harsh thud and nasty word.

"_Fight it, Hana. They're only nightmares. They're only in the past."_

I fell to the ground at a hard thud and shuffled back into a far corner, tears streaming down my cheeks. I pulled my legs to my chest and wrapped my arms tightly around them, keeping myself as small as I could.

"_They are only memories. You will never be alone again."_

The thuds and cries outside only grew louder. The wood began to creak.

I clasped my hands over my head, trying to block out the sound. "Make it stop! Please, make it all stop!"


	12. Chapter 12

I regret nothing.

* * *

12.

"I've never seen him like this," Tooth muttered as they each looked through a pile of old pages and books, trying to find what was wrong with Hana. They had returned to the Pole immediately as Pitch returned to the sleigh with her unconscious and in obvious pain. Tooth chanced a glance to the lounge down the way, watching him concentrate on keeping her nightmares at bay. She watched Sandy sign a few things, picking up the gist of what he was saying. _"You need a break. Let me take over."_

His angry toned carried up the stairs. "These aren't what you deal with on a nightly basis. Look through the papers to find what's causing this. You'd be more useful then."

Jack looked up from his work, but Tooth only shook her head. "Don't get involved, Jack. You're the last person he'd accept help from right now."

He turned his gaze away, looking at the papers. "Sandy only wants to help," he responded just as quiet. "We all do."

"Pitch is right. She isn't suffering from something Sandy could keep at bay." She looked over at them, seeing Sandy sign a _"Don't let this cloud your judgment" _before returning to the table. "These are worse than bad dreams." She skimmed over an article, finding nothing once more. "These are memories of such magnitude only he can keep at bay. He's the only one with the proper skill set to do so."

Sandy nodded and resumed his pile of texts.

Hours passed and they still found nothing. It had been seven hours since she had been bitten, and her condition only worsened despite Pitch's efforts to keep the memories at bay. He was able to see and hear a few things to help them from her memory. They were looking for something to do with a snake, and they were running out of time.

He stayed in place the whole time, sitting in a chair next to the arm of the lounge where her head was propped up, keeping his fingers to her temples, attempting to keep her calm. Despite his efforts, when hour seven hit, the fear only intensified to a level he almost had trouble suppressing. _I'm here, Hana. I haven't left._

The amount of times he had seen her trial was burned into his eyes, and it left him angry. Each time he saw it, more and more details surfaced. He ignored the calm voice of Tooth telling him to rest, keeping his focus on holding the terrors back. He clenched his teeth as the memories replayed, this one with terrifyingly accurate detail.

"_Come on Paul, who will know if we don't go just this once?"_

"_It's church, Serah, we have to go."_

_She rolled her eyes and dragged him behind the barn, away from the flow of townsfolk that filed into the church. "We go every week and listen to that preacher go on and on. Why don't we just… take a break?" She trailed her fingers up his chest as she backed him up against the barn._

"_We have to, Serah. How else we gonna get to heaven?"_

_She rolled her eyes. "We say grace every night, we learn about Him in school, and from our families. Why can't we have a break on a Sunday? Didn't He have Sunday off according to the book?"_

_He narrowed his eyes. "You know He did. And it isn't some book, Serah, it's true. He is there, and He needs us in church." _

_She gave him a mischievous grin. "Really Paul, you don't honestly believe all of it?"_

_He pushed her off, leaving her startled at his glare. "I do. And you're not who I thought you were. You're a sinner." He stalked off, leaving her in a daze. _

_She glared at his retreating back. "Fine! Be a sheep just like everyone else!"_

_The memory faded to her eating dinner with her mother and father, a meager meal of cabbage soup. The harvest had not gone so well that year. Her father broke the tense silence. "You weren't in church today."_

"_I didn't feel like going," she responded just as tersely. _

"_You'll be going to Hell then, I take it?"_

_She calmly set her spoon down. "Father, I can't very well go to a place I don't think exists."_

_Her father pounded a fist into the table. "I will not have that talk in my house! Not in front of Him!" He pointed to a crucifix by the door. "No daughter of mine will be a sinner!"_

_Without a word she stood from the table and took her shawl from beside the door._

"_And where do you think you're going?"_

_She pointed to the crucifix. "Ask Him. I thought He knew everything." She slammed the door behind her and took off, not caring where she went, who she ran into. She ended up in the tavern, and, with the help of an interested bartender, proceeded to drink until she was numb. In doing so, she accepted the advances of the bartender, and he took her in the back. It wasn't the most glamorous way to lose her virginity, but she was twenty, still unmarried, still untouched. _

_She was found the next day in her home by the town governor, and taken in to stand trial. Paul had turned her in for trying to coerce him down the path of sin. He had turned her in for being a witch. The bartender had also come forward, saying she had cast an enchantment on him to make him do what he did. No one listened to her. She was labeled a witch and sentenced to death._

_She sat alone in her straw-strewn cell, naked, not allowed any article of clothing. Sinners and witches didn't need such things. She waited while they put together the gallows, listening to the hammers work against the wood. She cried to deaf ears, cried until she was hoarse and then cried more, sobbed for her innocence. She wasn't a witch, she wasn't a sinner. She was only different. What was wrong with being different? What was wrong with asking questions?_

_As she was led to the gallows, still denied clothes to cover her indecency, her eyes were sunken, her throat dry and cracked, her face sore. It was made worse as the townsfolk decided to throw rotten food at her, just as they would to a common criminal. The words, "sinner", "witch", "harlot", "whore", "deceiver", and worse were thrown around, making her hide behind her then long curtain of black hair. _

_They fitted the noose around her neck as she got to the gallows, and her heart hammered against her chest. She didn't want to die. It wasn't her time. She didn't deserve to die. Why had she asked questions? She saw her parents in the crowd, the same look of animosity on their faces as everyone else. 'I'll be a good girl. I swear it. I'll be good. I'll go to church, I'll believe in God. Mommy, Daddy please—'_

_The shock of the floor vanishing beneath her feet and the sudden stop shattered her being, and if it weren't for her hands being bound, she would have struggled against the noose tightening against her throat from her weight. There was nothing she could do but count the seconds as breathing became harder with the rope biting into her flesh. When it began to all fade away, when she finally stopped struggling, when the pain vanished to nothing, she heard them all cheer._

_She heard her parents cheer for the death of a witch._

"I've got it!"

Pitch looked up from her, keeping his magic active. "What is it Bunny?"

The rabbit leapt down with the book, a grim look on his face. "It's something called a Mark of Trial. It's inflicted by his Abyssal Anacondas, which is why there was no blood on her bite wounds."

"This clarifies nothing. There is only fifteen minutes left, rabbit."

"I'm getting to it." The others joined around him, listening to the explanation while tears escaped Hana's closed eyes. "It's-it's a trial, mate. The effects of the bite worsen over eight hours. If she gives in to her guilt, gives in to the terror, she dies in relevance to her sins."

Tooth flitted in front of him. "So the others?"

"Were bitten, and they gave in. The one in the tub died of vanity, gazing at her reflection too closely. The one with the bleach was a glutton, and so died consuming something that would kill him. The promiscuous sheila carved up her face to hide her beauty."

"They all make sense," Jack said, tossing his staff back and forth, "but what about her? She doesn't fit in to the Seven Deadly category."

"A sin is a sin. It doesn't have to be a Deadly one to be deadly."

Hana made them all jump as she quickly sat up, frantically grabbing at the back of the couch, anything to keep her stable. She was muttering, her skin shimmering with a cold sweat and her eyes were wide in fear. Her chest heaved with incoherent words. The only thing they began to make out was, "It has to stop. Make it stop. I have to-have to make it stop. All of it." Her hands reached for her throat, applying pressure.

Pitch took her hands and held them firmly against the couch and Jack rushed forward to hold her legs down as she began to struggle.

"It needs to stop!" she screamed, tears still streaming down her temples. "They won't stop. I need to die for it to stop. Please just let me die!"

"We won't let you," Pitch muttered into her ear. He looked to Sandy. "Hold her arms down. I need my hands for this."

He nodded as Bunny tried to speak. "Wouldn't it be easier to tie her hands together?"

The Boogieman glared at him. "Her hands were tied together as she took her last breaths as a human in that noose. Is that really a wise choice right now?"

Bunny fell silent as Sandy took her hands in his own, holding them tightly. All the while she begged to die.

Pitch resumed his concentration, sorting through the building shadows of her mind. _"You're not allowed to die."_

"_All of this will stop! Please, I'm begging you, let me go."_

"_Never."_ At least she was responding to him now. _"Remember after all of this? When I found you in the woods? You were naked and terrified, and I helped you. Do you remember that?"_

In her mind, he could see her try to think, and physically she looked to be fighting with herself. _"I-I think so. You-you gave me your coat. Asked my name." _She flinched on both planes. _"You gave me shelter."_

He let out a mental laugh. _"Yes, keep going. What else?"_

"_The Guardians shunned me. Told me I didn't use my powers correctly."_

"_Ah, yes, but what is your center?"_

"_I-I don't know. Pitch, please just let me stop suffering. Please."_

He growled, this time out loud, making the others look at him but he ignored it. _"Stop saying such idiotic things. This is what he wants. Listen to me, Hana. What is your center?"_

"_I don't-I don't know."_

"_Think, Hana. What is it you said you could see in me? Something that I didn't know I could possess." _When she remained silent, his voice grew quieter. _"What did you see in me, Serah?"_

"_I saw… I saw beauty in your work. In the way you crafted your talents." _The shadows began to recede, and the sounds haunting her memories started to fade. _"You put such care into your creatures, gave them all a purpose. It didn't matter that they were creatures of nightmares. They were still beautiful."_ Her mental self looked to him, finally able to see him. She gave a soft smile. _"You were beautiful as you worked."_

Outside her mind her struggles died down and her mutterings stopped. Her face went neutral, devoid of pain. The others looked on with bated breath as Jack and Sandy both let their grips loosen, still hovering if they were needed again.

The shadows vanished completely and Pitch pulled away from her mind as she stirred, her eyes fluttering open. She gave a breath of a laugh and reached up to touch his face. "Stubborn old man."

"It paid off. Can't have you dying on me. Wandering the shadows would be frightfully dull alone."

The others each let out a sigh of relief and rushed the woman, all making sure she was all right. Only one stood off to the side, mentally exhausted. He jumped as someone clapped him on the shoulder, and he looked to see North smiling at him. "You care much for her."

"She keeps life from getting dull." He looked at North, still smiling. "I will cut that grin off if you don't stop."

"If you did not care, you would have let her die."

"And I didn't, so there's your answer." He narrowed his eyes. "Why does it matter? You all know I kept her in the lair for a few centuries before... she left." If the others knew why she had left they never said anything, and he wasn't about to say a word about it. "It doesn't matter why."

"It does." He put his hands to his shoulders, turning the darker man towards the others, still making sure Hana was fine. She cast a glance his way and smiled before turning back to the others. "It shows you have heart still." He nodded behind him to the elevator. "Walk with me."

Pitch found no reason to argue and followed the Russian, both not saying a word as the elevator took them down to where the yetis were still frantically putting the final touches on the Christmas presents and shoving them in the sleigh. He took them both in his office, allowing Pitch to see just what North did with his spare time. As the door closed behind him, the sound of the yetis growling at each other faded to a muffle, as did the testing of the toys. "Something on your mind, North?"

The larger man only chuckled. "You're a tricky one, Kozmotis."

He hid his surprise well. "I see you've been talking to him."

North nodded. "He shared our concern, but told us to leave you be. That you are not threat anymore. You have… priorities to protect."

He laughed. "I'm not a threat? Does he not realize what I am capable of doing? Does he not remember why he is where he is?"

"He remembers. He also says you will not do so again. So long as she lives."

His laughter faded away. "What would she have to do with this?"

North's knowing smile returned as he sat at his desk, flicking an elf away from his plate of cookies. "You know what she has to do with it. If it is your pride keeping you from saying what it is, it does not matter. What matters is you care. You have heart. You still have some good in you." His eyes stared at him, holding his gaze. "There is still part of you that is Kozmotis Pitchiner."

"Kozmotis has been dead for far longer than you've been alive, North. In either life."

"He still lives." He inspected one of his cookies before eating it. "And knowing you have heart tells me I can trust you."

He curled his lip. "How does that make you trust me?"

"You did not let her kill herself. You fought for her. She fights for us."

"And you left her on her own with the King of Nightmares when she was turned. What does that say about you?"

North went silent for a moment, choosing his words carefully. "She was not what we represented. We represented hope, wonder, laughter." He shook his head. "She was not that person. Jack was not either, which is why he was left to his own devices after we realized he only wanted to do what made him happy, if it made children happy or not." He pushed the rest of the cookies aside, which the elf happily took away. "Regardless, Hana still fights for us. It shows we can trust her."

"So why trust me? I've done you no favors." He motioned to the office. "I could drown this whole place in shadows if I truly wanted to."

"But you haven't." North stood again. "You've had power for nine months. In that time you could have drowned us all in darkness. But you didn't. Something stopped you." He jabbed Pitch in the chest. "What was it?"

He stood silent for a moment, turning his gaze away.

"This is why we can trust you."

He turned and opened the door. "Stay out of my way, and we'll all see this through." He stopped in the doorway, looking at the globe. "We're running out of time. It's Christmas Eve."

North nodded. "It's our last chance. This is best night for him to strike. When everyone go to evening mass." He placed a hand on the darker man's shoulder. "Go to her, Pitch. Make sure she is fine. She needs to see you more than any of us."

He shrugged him off but left for the elevator, leaving North smiling in the doorway of the office. "Even the darkest beasts have hearts." As if struck with an idea, he barricaded himself in his office for the time being, working out the crazy idea that had burrowed into his mind.


	13. Chapter 13

While I don't regret going to a dark place, I do apologize. I think it was necessary. To make up for it, I am providing fluffy smut that I do not regret in the slightest. Enjoy, and as always, it is wonderful to hear how I'm doing. And I really appreciate everyone's opinions on Hana. It's always a challenge to balance their perks with imperfections and flaws.

* * *

13.

I wouldn't wish that ordeal on anyone. No matter who I've hated in the past, no one deserved that. What was sobering was that I learned it wasn't even the worst I could have had. I learned that Pitch had kept the worst of it at bay with his skill set. I could only imagine the horrors those humans had gone through. It was no wonder Lucifer said they had wanted to die. I had wanted to, and I had been helped.

I frowned, realizing everything I had said and done, feeling ashamed of myself. Everyone in just this room alone had secrets, things they felt guilty about, things they wish they could have done differently. "What did you all find out while we were in town?" I muttered.

"Just more deaths and dead ends," Bunny said, shaking his head. He gestured to me. "More importantly, what happened to you sheila?"

I didn't want to talk about it. If I had the choice I would have stayed at the Pole, or in my tower, or underground in the lair in Italy to avoid seeing him again. However, I didn't have that luxury. I couldn't run and hide. I noticed I was rubbing my arms and forced them to my sides, curling my lip at my obnoxious nervous habit. "He found me. I-I was just watching the humans enter a church, feeling their terror as they congregated inside. He commented on their stories. That the scriptures were written about him and what the people revered as God. The scriptures are just stories. Folklore that made it big, that everyone believed to be true. And since he was given a story that made his name known, his power grew, and he had them in the palm of his hand.

"He said he was tired of being brushed off as a villain in a story. Sure he has many that still believe he is real and that he will damn your soul for eternity if you give in to his trials, but if you compare now to how it was when he was most powerful, it isn't the same. Most people these days don't believe anymore, with the introduction of religious freedom and logical thought." I swallowed and continued on, just now taking notice to two missing members of the hodgepodge of a group. "Even the most religious state in America is only just over half religious. But, if you put the fear in someone, you can make them believe."

"But why now?" Jack asked.

"It's the perfect time of the year to do this," Tooth answered, now catching on. "Christmas is hope and wonder, and the celebration of the birth of their savior." She looked to the others. "What better time to strike than now?"

It was then I realized what day it was. I couldn't believe I had missed the telltale signs of frantic yetis bellowing downstairs. "Oh no. It's Christmas Eve, isn't it?"

Tooth nodded. "Five in the morning on the eastern seaboard. There isn't much more we can do for another twelve hours."

I looked out to the globe, seeing the lights flicker gently. "How many families will be incomplete for tomorrow morning?"

"Only the ones who have had anything taken from them."

Sandy nodded and signed a few things, but I didn't understand what he meant.

Bunny chuckled. "He said we'll stop him from ruining any more families." He pointed a paw to me. "But you've had a rough time." His face fell. "Before anything else happens, we need to know what made you… like that."

I could feel my stomach drop. "A snake. He has a massive snake that bites its victims. I suppose if a person doesn't really believe in him, they wouldn't see the snake. However the venom he introduced to the normally harmless bite… I've—" I swallowed hard. "I don't wish that on anyone. Including Lucifer. Still, the fact that he uses this venom to force his victims to kill themselves is sickening, and in that case, I would turn his snake on him." I looked at them in curiosity. "How did I survive? He said after eight hours my soul was his."

"You didn't kill yourself. You rode it out," Jack answered. "He has nothing to take. Bunny found it in a book. You were bit by an Abyssal Anaconda, and given a Mark of Trial. What it is, we didn't see. All we saw in the book was that you had to survive for eight hours."

"It replays your greatest sins, regrets, and darkest memories over and over in your mind, attempting to consume your sanity." I shook my head and felt the sudden urge to stand and start moving. I did so and didn't stop my hands rubbing my skin. "I've done terrifying things as Spirit of Halloween, but nothing like this. I've only shown people their greatest nightmares, made them petrified for a few minutes to get the essence I need to survive." I stopped moving my hands, my nails biting into my skin hard enough to make divots. "I never want anyone to die. I'm nothing like him."

"No one is saying you are," Tooth said quietly, and I felt her hand on my shoulder. "Did Lucifer say something to you about it?"

I bit my lip. "Is it… wrong that I live to spread fear in people?"

She wanted to say something, but fell silent. Jack took her place, standing in front of me. "It is not wrong." He spread his arm out to the globe. "We have enough people working on happiness, to keep kids young as long as they can. However, they can't grow without knowing a little bit of fear. Of mortality." He chuckled. "If it helps any, I always loved your work on All Hallows."

That's right. I was a Spirit before he was. I had seen so many people over the centuries, I wouldn't have been able to remember who he was as a human. "Weren't you a mischief-maker as a human?" I asked with a grin.

He gave a sheepish grin. "Of course. You always had the right balance of fear and fun. Sure some moments were scary, and made my sister run for cover, but the night always ended with laughter and stories."

I could tell he was enjoying having his memories back. I looked to the others. Their opinion mattered the most. Was I evil?

Bunny only sighed, shrugged, and smiled. "The anklebiters need some fear in them to understand they are still mortal. They are not invincible. No child grows up without something that scares them." He put his paw in the air in dismissal. "Besides, you're only out on Halloween and a few other times during the year having fun with them. Not like… not like others."

I knew who he meant. Even after everything he had done the past nine months, they still wouldn't fully trust him. I don't think they trusted me fully despite their words. I couldn't blame them for not wanting to trust their lives in the hands of the King of Nightmares.

Tooth's hand squeezed my shoulder. "We'll continue viewing the books. Why don't you stretch your legs, rest for a bit? You've given us a lot of information to work off of."

I nodded and pulled away. "I-I'll do that."

"Just stay out of the way of the yetis!" Jack called after me.

I only nodded and continued on to the elevator, taking me down to the room I had stayed in before. I could have left, yes, but I didn't think North would appreciate a full-frown stallion in his lair. I closed the door to the room behind me and looked out the frost covered window, through a small frame of clarity. All that met my vision was white, and I had to shield my eyes to the rising sun starting to shine off the snow. With a sigh I drew the curtains and held on to them, leaning my head to the soft fabric.

"I saw you come in here."

I jumped and heard a slight protest from the threading in the curtain, making me toss it out of my grip as I turned around. I put my hand to my heart. "Don't do that, Oogie. You could at least open the damned door." Despite my words I couldn't help the smile that broke past my restraint as I leapt into him, wrapping my arms around his neck and I burrowed my face to his chest. "You've saved my life again, Oogie. I need to start catching up."

I wasn't expecting his response. He returned the embrace with such strength it was almost possessive. Before I knew it, we were kneeling on the floor, and I realized how exhausted he would be after keeping diligent for eight hours. I would have stopped him if it wasn't for what he said. "I almost lost you. I wasn't about to let you continue to attempt to stop it all. I was… nervous that I couldn't hold it back forever."

It was more than nerves that he had felt. His voice told me everything. It was a somber tone. I held on to his neck tighter, knowing forming such words together would be hard for him.

"I've already lost my daughter. I can't lose you." He let out a soft laugh. "I suppose I'm no knight in shining armor, but I hope you'll understand that."

I laughed too and pulled back a bit. "You know I don't like flashy things anyway. I like the more, ah, tall, dark, and handsome route. The seductive tones." I reached up to rest my fingertips to his cheek. "Really, Oogie, I already owe you so much. Thank you." I looked down to his chest as he didn't move. "I heard you the whole time. I knew there was someone there holding the shadows back for me. I knew it was you. I just, I couldn't say anything. I couldn't respond."

"I saw it all. I had to."

I nodded. I knew he would have. If he hadn't dug into my mind when I was first turned, he would have certainly found everything out eventually. He always knew what I feared. He never knew why. He never had to know, and so never looked. I always loved how he still gave me privacy in my mind. In fact, there were many things I did still love about him.

Including him.

If he didn't share the same emotion, it didn't matter. I still mattered to him in some way, and I'd take that in an instant. I can't recall how it happened, but our lips pressed together, shifting in an almost frantic nature. I pushed against his skin harder, pulling his bottom lip between my teeth in a gentle nip.

He grinned, making it slip from my grasp. Without a spoken word he pulled my top away from my body, moving on to the bra below it, resuming our kiss. Once he removed that, I slipped his coat from his shoulders, running my nails up his arms, making him shiver. He shifted how he was sitting and pulled me to his lap, still refusing to leave my lips. I sighed into his skin as he trailed his fingers down my chest, running over my breasts. "It would have been such a crime to waste a body like this one," he muttered against my lips. "I couldn't let a creature of your beauty slip through my grasp for a final time." He trailed his lips over my jaw line. "You are not the only one to feel alone." He traveled down my throat as I shifted to kneel between his legs, feeling his arms wrap possessively around my hips. "You don't know how long I looked for… her. Only to find out she had been turned as well."

I held back the tears as a soft moan escaped my lips, feeling his breath against the skin of my breasts before he kissed the swell of one. "Even the Nightmare King has fears?"

"A king is nothing without a kingdom to rule." He stared at my skin for a moment before shifting his gaze to a neutral one. I couldn't read his intentions. "A king is also nothing without a queen."

He caught me off guard long enough to trail his tongue over the slope of my chest, lavishing the skin as he went. I shook my head and pushed at his shoulders, making him look up at me. "Oogie?"

"I only mean…" He cast his gaze away again. "I only mean stay this time. Don't leave again."

I also cast my gaze away. "How do I know it will stay like this? We started out fine the first time and then…" I shook my head. "How can I know you won't become that man again?"

"You can't." He took my face in my hands gently and made me look at him. "I can only ask you to trust me."

After a moment I nodded and he resumed our kiss again, his fingers trailing down my torso to meet over the button of my pants. I did the same to his as he trailed his lips to my throat again, flicking his tongue gently over the skin around the collar. As he ran his lips down my flesh he pulled my jeans and panties down with him, exposing the rest of my ashen skin to him. He had me shift out of them and resume my kneeling position, legs slightly spread. He laid on his back, letting me hover over him. Before I could ask what he was doing he latched on to my lower lips, making me choke on whatever I had wanted to ask. I leaned against his barely clothed hips, moaning against his skilled tongue and fingers. I bit my lip as I saw a hint of his hardened flesh still hidden by his pants. Without a second thought I leaned forward and trailed my fingers around his tip, feeling him hiss against my slick flesh.

With a grin I pushed his pants down his hips as he raised them for me to do so, shifting them down just enough to let his cock stand on its own. A particularly deep lick made me fall forward, leaning over his torso. I wanted him to feel just as good as I did. I bent down and licked his silky hard dick, pulling it into my mouth as he continued his own ministrations. If he were to always be like this, as he was in the beginning I would have taken his offer right away. For now, he had been a gentleman, as much as a man like him could be. But, would he always be like that? I let out a whimper as he hit a sweet spot, moaning against his cock as I bobbed my head on him, listening to his own soft moans. My nails bit into the rug by the fire as I arched my back, unable to keep my focus on him any longer. It felt too good, whatever it was he was doing with his tongue. I cried out as a tingle rushed down into my legs and washed over my mind.

He pulled back for a moment and I almost whined for him to continue. I had been so close. I moaned again and arched further as he resumed, unable to take the pressure or the twisting motions he was doing. I instinctively twitched away from him but he gripped my hips hard, keeping me in place. "Mm, Oogie. I have no idea what you're doing but it's, ah, amazing." The pressure in my belly snapped and a heat rushed to my core, making my head swim. I screamed for him. Powers above it felt so good, I had to. My nails dug far into the rug and my head titled back as he continued his assault. I put a hand on his, telling him I couldn't take any more.

"We're far from through, my dear." He nudged my leg to get me to move so he could get up again. Without a word he leaned me back on the rug, claiming my lips with his again. A shock went through me as his cock pressed against me, hitting my still sensitive clit. I instinctively shifted my hips, letting him slip inside just a bit. He laughed against my skin and moved so he could slide all the way in, both of us sighing as he filled me up. "Now what does my queen want of me?"

I was in no mood to question him or correct him. I was, however, in the mood to test him. I bit my lip again. I wanted him to give me everything he had and more. "Love me."

He slipped his hands under my thighs, lifting me for him to get closer and lean over my body. He kept his pace steady, slow, and sharp, keeping me gasping as he stabbed in to me. I'd for sure regret staying on the floor later, but then it was a turn on, feeling the sting of the rug below me. Our moans and sighs began to escalate, echoing off the walls, each moan coming out faster each time.

The pressure inside me broke and I clenched down on him, tilting my head back as my nails found purchase in his back. He let out a groan of a laugh and grunted a bit as he continued to move through my climax.

"Mm, see? It's all about buildup." His own fingers grabbed my ass in a bruising hold as he rode out a mild wave of pleasure, refusing to release just yet.

I looked in to his pale eyes and caught his lips with mine again as I realized, I almost lost all of this. I had been so ready to die, and for what? Memories that didn't even relate to me anymore? I had a new family, in a way, people that cared about me and whom I cared about just as much. I was with a man who accepted who and what I was.

I wasn't alone anymore.

I would make sure Lucifer paid dearly for what he almost stripped me of.

I wrapped my legs around his hips, giving him better depth and making him hiss. "You're going to make this end too quickly, Hana," he moaned between clenched teeth.

"Mm, will I?" I rocked my hips with him, feeling his grip increase on my ass. I leaned up and took his earlobe between my teeth, tickling it with my warm breath. "I want to make my King of Nightmares come."

His lips found themselves on my neck and he sank his teeth into my skin, making me whimper in a mix of pain and pleasure. He growled into the flesh, making a tingle rise up to my head. His sharp thrusts were getting faster and harder, and I was meeting his thrusts with equal fervor. I wanted to make him feel good in any way possible. By now the rug burns were a dull sting that I barely felt with each jerk of his hips. "I'm almost there," he moaned.

I grinned and clenched down on him on purpose, loving the surprised and then immediately mischievous looks he gave me. My grin couldn't last as I was sent over the edge again, clenching down harder than I thought I could for a moment as a scream left my lips. "Don't stop. Oh gods above, Pitch!" Instead of stopping he quickened his pace, intensifying it to a point where I could only gouge valleys in his skin as I reached peaks I had almost forgotten about.

He chuckled as he rode out my climax. "I must be doing something right. You're screaming my name instead of that nickname of yours."

I let out a breathy chuckle as the climax faded. "Don't lie, you like your nickname. It's softer than your real name."

He ran his legs up my thighs and leaned over to my ear. "Kozmotis."

I was thrown off for a moment. "What?"

"My birth name is Kozmotis. It's the name, mm, that I used before I became Pitch Black." He gave a hard stroke, making me gasp.

"I'm getting close again."

"Don't hold back. Scream for me."

Our sounds of pleasure were increasing again and I held on to his neck tightly as the most intense climax of the night hit me. I bit his shoulder, mewling into his flesh. As soon as it passed, I tried speaking, only to have it come out as a soft whisper. I tried again, and the words came out louder. "Kozmotis!"

"That's it, Serah. Again." His breathing was growing ragged and his thrusts were becoming animalistic.

"K-Kozmotis, don't stop. Fuck, don't stop." He sent me over once more and I was sure I had drawn blood on him by now.

His body gave a slight shake and he clenched his jagged teeth together. With a loud moan he reached down and finished himself off on my belly, knowing I hated the cleanup of the alternative. However, at that point in time, I wouldn't have cared in the slightest where it would have gone. We laid motionless for a moment, watching our chests heave against the skin, our breathing heavy.

I couldn't believe how close I had been to giving in to Lucifer, how close I had been to giving up a man like Pitch. I almost felt a little sick and leaned up to kiss him again. "I owe you so much," I said against his lips. "I don't even know how to start paying you back for everything you've done."

"Stay with me in Italy. You used to love it there."

"I still do." I looked down at his chest and trailed my fingers over his smooth skin. "That wasn't the only thing I still love about that place though."

He seemed to catch on after a moment, however, he didn't say anything. "When this is said and done, come back with me."

I didn't have much else to lose by not going. Hessian and Onyx were hitting it off extremely well, and it was always depressing seeing him sulk when I wouldn't see Pitch for a night or so. "Alright." As he smiled again, I could see just how tired he was in the light of the fireplace. His usually sunken eyes looked worse. "What the hell is keeping you awake?"

"At this point I really don't know." He looked down. "It could be the fact I'm still on top of a beautiful naked woman."

I pushed at his shoulder. "Knock it off and get me something to clean off with."

He muttered something about not taking orders but got to his feet regardless, holding his pants up as they fell down his thighs and almost tripped him.

I held back my laughter as he fetched a spare blanket and tossed it to me. "Now I would've loved to see that. You falling on your face with your pants around your ankles."

He rolled his eyes and fastened them again. "Ha ha. Very funny." He pointed at me. "Watch that I won't slip a sex dream in while you're sleeping around the others."

I paused in cleaning off my belly. "You wouldn't dare."

He sat on floor, leaning against the bed so he could face the fire. "Test me and find out."

I tossed the blanket to the side and crawled over to him as he lifted his arm to offer his chest to lay on. "You'd be the biggest ass I know."

"Thought I already was." He reached behind us on to the bed to pull a loose blanket off the mattress, wrapping it around the both of us. I almost expected him to slip into sleep immediately, but he kept himself awake.

I frowned. "Why don't you sleep? You need it."

"Once you're asleep I will. We don't know if there's any after effects of the bites. I'd rather not go through that again."

If I wasn't as tired as I was, I would have laughed. He for sure wasn't a knight in shining armor, but he was still my tall, dark, and handsome savior. I did let a smile slip as I knew what he wasn't saying. I placed a kiss to his chest. "Thank you, Oogie. I just don't know how easy I can fall asleep."

He conjured a ball of his dark sand. "This can help. Nightmare free, of course."

I nodded and let him sprinkle the sand over my head. I can't remember how fast exactly I fell asleep. However, I do remember him mumbling something. What it was, I wasn't sure, and I haven't bothered to ask. There were more important matters at hand. Lucifer would pay for what he had done already, and for everything he was about to do.


	14. Chapter 14

I've not given up on this. Sorry for the delay, I got distracted by my Thor/Avengers one-shots that I add to "The Way Things Were". These things happen.

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14.

The snake bite fortunately had no after effects. I didn't expect it to. The venom was made to drive a person to suicide within eight hours. The potency would work each time. I doubt Lucifer put any thought into an after effect.

I woke to North's shout of joy from somewhere within the Pole. I saw I had been moved from the floor to the bed and I had curled around Pitch's body under the blankets some time during the night.

He sighed without opening his eyes. "It would seem North has found something."

I sat up, realizing he hadn't bothered putting any of my clothes back on. "Anything is better than fighting blind."

The door burst open so fast I had no idea it had happened until it was too late. North barged in to tell me something, but was cut off before he could get a word in as I yelped and pulled a loose blanket to my chest. Pitch had also risen, murder in his eyes.

"This better be good, North!"

North shielded his eyes. "_Izvinite_! I've got solution. I'll need the help of both of you."

My curiosity piqued, I nodded. "You've got my attention."

* * *

"Everyone has weakness, no?"

"Depends on who we're talking about," Bunny said, crossing his arms, sending a glare to Pitch. We had joined the others as soon as we had found all our clothes again.

Pitch curled his lip and I jumped in to stop any arguments. "We're trying to work together. Common enemy, remember?"

After a moment of tense silence, North continued. "Everyone does have weakness." He slapped a large tome on the table and pointed to it. "He is no different."

"You need his fears," Pitch muttered, looking to North. "That's why you need me."

"We all must play a part in this," I said, thumbing through the tome. I frowned at the faded writing, trying to make out the language to no avail. "What is this?"

Tooth took it from my grasp and opened to a page, placing her finger to a certain line. _"The farmer readily traded his wife to the evil man, wanting the best soil for his crops. Over time, the evil man grew fond of the wife, and she of him. When the farmer's crops began to die, the evil man was blamed, for he had traded off foul land that would produce nothing. He was known for his wicked ways, but no one could prove it. He was found and, as punishment, the wife was killed before he was to set an example for his doomed soul._" She frowned and continued on. _"The man regretted nothing of his actions, and laughed through his last breaths. The bodies were buried in different locations. However, after six days, the man's grave was found torn up and the body missing. From that day, the man was associated with all evil deeds that were seen as taboo, unclean, or sinful." _She looked over her book at us. "He loved someone."

North nodded and he caught my eye. "With manner of death, her soul may be here still."

I felt an enormous amount of pressure put on my shoulders. "I wouldn't know where to look—"

"But Pitch can know," he countered, looking to the boogieman. "What say you, Pitch?"

He looked to the others, gauging their reactions. I myself almost believed he wouldn't help. However, he eventually nodded.

North's features brightened as well as the others. "Then it would appear we have plan of action." He swept an arm to the elevator. "To the sleigh!"

Even if we could find Lucifer's weakness, even if we could stop him before he, quite literally, raised hell, it would be at a great cost. We were running out of time. Christmas was slipping from our grasp. It was then it dawned on me. "North? Isn't your sleigh full of gifts for the children?"

He let out a bark of a laugh as we rushed to the elevator, wasting no time. "How do you think I deliver all in one trip? Storage is wonderful thing, no?"

I laughed as we dodged yetis securing the last reindeer in place. "That is true. As the others jumped into the sleigh, it took me a moment to join them. I wasn't looking forward to the crazy ice runway, but if they believed it would be the faster way, so be it.

I wasn't sure if we could save the population of the world in time to avoid an apocalyptic response. Humans were on edge due to their own actions as it was. Add in a devil to the mix, and they weren't too far off from a true post-apocalyptic world where no one was safe.

As if sensing my apprehension, Jack offered me a smile. "It'll all work out in the end."

I nodded as North took hold of the reins. "I hope you're right." The reindeer reared at the sound of North's snapping whips and shot forward, making the sleigh lurch forward, leaving my stomach back where we started. My hand dug in to the closest flesh object, and felt it tighten in response. Even though it was a silent response, I could still at least count on my King of Nightmares to calm my nerves.

North threw a snow globe ahead of us, creating a portal for us to slip through. There was no turning back now.

Now if only my stomach had the same enthusiasm I had.


	15. Chapter 15

Sorry it's taken so long to get to the story. I do have it all planned out, so it will be completed. I've just been a bit busy. ^^;

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15.

It was far too quiet for a Christmas evening. Kids should have been playing in the snow outside, should have been outside in general. Trees stood silent in the windows, glowing softly amongst the stillness of the night.

I think it was more terrifying than anything I had ever done myself.

The streets themselves were quiet. As we traveled the snow-covered lawns, the crunches echoed eerily. Cars were missing from driveways, and lawn lights were off. I looked to North, seeing his expression strained with angst. I could only imagine the pain he felt, knowing families, children, were suffering on his watch. I took his hand in mine and was surprised to feel him hold on like I was a lifeline.

Bunny stopped us as we reached an empty baseball field at the park, leaping forward, nose to the air. Almost immediately a hiss rose up from the darkness.

"I hope that was you," Jack said, his staff held at the ready.

"I don't know how to hiss like that, mate," he said with a growl.

Immediately, weapons were drawn and we stood with our backs pressed together. The hissing seemed to come from all around us. I couldn't figure out how. As it came closer, my stomach dropped.

There was more than one anaconda. Much, much more.

And they had us all surrounded.

My grip tightened on my scythes, holding back my fear while the snakes slowly approached. We each prepared to break and kill as many as we could when they stopped, still as the night.

A deep chuckle sounded, and the crunching of snow followed. "You Guardians take your jobs seriously, don't you?" Lucifer emerged from the shadows of a home, followed closely by two massive goatmen. "Why can't you just accept the new order? Demons are much more efficient than humans. They don't break as easily."

I kept my focus on the snakes. There was no way I was going to be bitten again. Once was enough.

"However, it seems I have underestimated you. No one has survived the Mark before. I won't make that mistake again."

"Pitch," North muttered, "we will distract minions. You take Lucifer."

I noticed him nod in agreement and lean forward. All at once we struck. The six of us took on the snakes as Pitch darted forward to take on Lucifer. I had no time to worry about him, nor did I let myself. He could defend himself better than anyone I knew. I worried more for my own safety. I managed to slice through seven of the snakes within a minute. I didn't have a chance to look around and see how everyone else was doing. I ducked in time to avoid a deadly swing from one of the goatmen, and had to do a back handspring to avoid a strike from another snake. With a sharp whistle I called for Hessian to help in the battle as more and more snakes came. The goatman took all my attention. I needed the backup. The horse appeared instantly and jumped into action with a vicious growl, his ever-present green skeletal markings glowing against the night.

With my focus free again, I turned to the goatman, who was scratching up snow with his hoof. I held my scythes at the ready. "Torro!" Wrong animal, same effect. The goatman sprang forward and I leapt out of the way, rolling back up to my feet. It changed direction, hammer raised, and I dodged a swing, spinning around to sink one of my scythes into its side. It howled in pain and turned red glowing eyes to me. I tried yanking the scythe out, but it was in too far. I narrowly avoided a swing of its hammer. I merely formed another scythe as it swung again and neatly took his weapon hand off at the wrist.

It didn't slow it down at all.

Bleeding from its side and its stump of an arm only enraged it more. Foam fell from its mouth as it turned on me again, head lowered ready to strike. I did the only thing I could do and fell in to the shadows as it got close enough and reached up for its ankle. I managed to snag it and pull it down into the void with me enough to get it stuck. I resurfaced beside it, out of the way of its flailing, bleeding limb as it tried reaching for me, roaring its demonic sounds. I thought I had it trapped and raised my scythes for the kill, but it merely tugged so hard it ripped away from its trapped foot.

The godforsaken thing ripped off its own foot to get to me. What was Lucifer feeding these things?

My nerves seized and I immediately changed my path, avoiding its limping lunge. In a way, it reminded me of the Black Knight of the Holy Grail. Just a flesh wound, right? That's what this thing was making it seem like. I thought I had an advantage as it fell to the ground with a frustrated snarl. I advanced on it, ready to end the whole charade when I stopped in horror. Both the severed limbs became covered in black fire, which took shape of the missing foot and hand. In the fire hand, another hammer solidified and the goatman jumped to its… its feet. Its fire foot. I swallowed. _Severing limbs won't work, Hana. Time to be a zombie slayer._ I steeled myself and readied my weapons for a final blow. "It's going to be like that, is it?"

The goatman merely scratched at the ground again, kicking up dirt from below the snow, snorting in anger.

"So be it." I jumped forward at the same time the goatman did. However, at the last second, I fell into the shadows again and reemerged as it traveled over me. Before it had a chance to correct its stance, I leapt on to its back and swept my scythes through its neck. It took all my strength to cut through the skin, sinew, and bone. I pushed off from its back, shoving the body into the snow. I'd for sure feel that in the morning.

With my opponent downed, I finally had a chance to look at the others. They had each summoned in helpers to fend off the snakes while they battled their own goatmen. Sandy had created, wisely enough, a pack of jaguars, one of the two only predators of an anaconda in the wild. They each seemed to be handling their goatmen with as much difficulty as I had had. I looked around, but could not see Lucifer or Pitch, but I could hear weapons clashing farther away. I whistled for Hessian and followed the noise, finding no trace of the two at all.

I turned around the building holding the restrooms and vending machines just as Pitch was thrown past me. "Pitch!"

"Get out of here, Hana." He knelt in the snow for a moment, wiping at his jaw. In the light of the moon I could see it shine red. "I can't afford to be distracted."

Lucifer chuckled as he came out from the behind the building, looking as if he had taken no damage at all. "Is that all the Terrifying Boogieman has to offer?" His sword shined menacingly, reflecting on to the snow. His eyes glowed in the dark of the night.

Pitch only gave a sharp laugh. "I'm only having a bit of fun." He gripped his huge scythe and leapt forward, striking Lucifer's form. The devil merely dodged out of the way, knocking the scythe back with his sword. Pitch corrected his swing just as easily, continuing his blow. He managed to knock Lucifer into the air, sending him flying into the soccer field. He turned to me, gripping on to my shoulders. "I managed to find the woman," he muttered low enough so Lucifer couldn't hear. "She is in an unmarked grave in Palestine, under a large oak. I'll use my tunnels to send you there directly, but you must be swift. Don't worry about us."

I nodded my understanding.

"Her name is Lucretia." He opened a void in the shadow created by the building. "Get her."

I swung up into Hessian's saddle, almost ready to leave. Just as I went to spur the stallion into the void, a sword protruded from Pitch's chest with a sickening sound. My blood went cold as Lucifer stepped from behind him, a grin on his face. "Pitch!"

Lucifer twisted the blade, sending it further through his body. "Even if she escapes, I'll still have the pleasure of killing you and the others, as well as all the sinners of this planet."

I didn't know what to do. Everything slowed down. The only thing I could hear was the sound of the sword slicing through flesh over and over again, I could only see his shocked face. I could only smell his blood rising to the surface. _This isn't… this isn't right. _

Pitch didn't say a word as his eyes narrowed. He raised his hand and summoned Onyx from the shadows. The Nightmare pushed Hessian forward into the void.

"No! Hessian, don't—" The horse only pushed forward and shadow tendrils raised from his back, preventing me from leaping from it. "Pitch!"

The Boogieman only gave me a sad smile, a trickle of blood escaping from his lips.

The last thing I saw as the void swallowed me up was Lucifer yanking the sword from Pitch's back, sending him to his knees as a trail of blood followed the blade. I leaned forward in the saddle, burying my face in Hessian's mane as he galloped forward. Everything began to crash in my mind. And, almost as fast, it vanished. I gripped the reigns tightly in my grasp and looked ahead to the end of the shadow path, determination pumping the blood in my ears.

Lucifer would die. And I would be the one to kill him when it came down to it.


	16. Chapter 16

16.

I'd later find out I was only in the tunnels for fifteen minutes. At the time, it felt like hours. Nothing seemed right anymore. I refused to believe he had been slain. He was stronger than that, faster, wiser. He had survived years of battles, especially before he had been sealed here on Earth.

And now… now he was gone. He had tried so hard to change to be a better man to me, while still holding on to who he was to the children of the world. All of that, and I had refused to trust him completely. I had been so stupid, so selfish to demand that he change for me. He was who he was, and that should have been enough. I should have learned to defend myself, to strike back to tell him I wouldn't take any of his shit, not just run away like a coward.

Hessian remained silent as he ran, never stopping for a breath. His mind pressed to mine though, just to relay comfort through the link. Even Onyx brushed her sand tendrils over my arms, showing she felt sorrow for her master's passing.

"_Her name is Lucretia. Get her."_

I spurred Hessian on faster. The end of the tunnels was in sight. I had to beat down the cold feeling of dread trying to rise in my chest. His sacrifice could not be in vain. I had to make it back before the others met the same fate.

I had to shield my eyes as we emerged in sunlight, and I felt the heat on my skin. I had a general idea of where Palestine was, but had never thought it would be this warm. Hessian's hooves dug in to the dirt as he came to a halt with a snort, tossing his head. Once my eyes adjusted to the light, I looked ahead of us, spotting the largest tree I had ever seen. "This must be it." I jumped out of the saddle and ran to the tree. I looked all around, getting more and more anxious as I found no indication that anything was buried there. True it had been an unmarked grave, but there still should have been something. I desperately pressed my hands to the bark. "Please, Lucretia. Still be here."

Very faintly, I heard a response, and I almost collapsed in relief. "Tia, please."

I pressed my head to the bark as best I could with my horns, my legs starting to feel weak. "Tia then."

"Why are you here?" There was a second of silence before she asked another question. "How can you hear me?"

I turned to the sound of the soft voice and saw the most beautiful woman I had ever seen in my life, both living and after. Her very old dress covered her feet, but made no secret of her lovely curves. Her face was one of angels, a perfectly slanted nose, almond shaped hazel eyes, and long brown hair that fell to her waist. Her delicate hands were folded in front of her as she looked at me curiously. I didn't need to use my ability to see her inner beauty as well as her physical one.

Her story instantly clarified to one of Beauty and the Beast, a gorgeous woman held captive by a cruel beast of a man, expected to be a slave the rest of her life. Instead, she fell for her captor, and he of her. Classic Stockholm Syndrome by our standards, but it happens. I couldn't stop the words as they flew out of my mouth, "Why Lucifer?"

"Tucian was a… complicated man, even in his mortal life." Her eyes dropped to the shade of the enormous tree. "However, he wasn't an evil man to me. He showed me a side no one saw. He was horrible at first, but he changed. He was afraid of being alone."

It struck home so hard it hurt. I put a hand to my heart, trying to steady it. It absolutely refused to calm down, and to stop hurting. "He killed someone I love."

Tia's gaze grew sadder. If possible, it only made her more attractive. "I'm sorry he is what he is. He doesn't have to be who he is. It is his choice."

"Can't you talk to him? Tell him to stop his path of destruction?"

She shook her head. "I fear I cannot leave this place. No one has been able to see me before to release my spirit."

I nodded. "You feel too much regret to move on."

"Tucian is how he is now because of me. I regretted not protecting him more than I did. He was still killed after me, all because the villagers had grown tired of his deeds." She rubbed at her arms, and I was immediately struck with an image of myself. "I tried to help him change, and he wouldn't. He loved ruining lives too much to stop. He loved it more than he loved me at times. The villagers wanted to make it clear they had had enough and sentenced me to death, and made him watch. I was used as an example to him. They say it didn't get to him, but as I looked upon him that day, I could see his sorrow."

Hessian stood by my side and nudged my arm. "Lucifer—Tucian needs you now. The whole world needs you now."

Her eyes narrowed. "What has he done?"

"He has succumbed to his madness. He is bringing the apocalypse to the world, starting tonight. He means to rid the world of sinners, both benign and deadly." I showed her the bite marks on my arm which had refused to heal. "He is giving them a fear toxin and making them all kill themselves. He is making them void of judgment, sending them straight to his possession. He tried to do it to me."

Tia held a hand to her mouth and looked away from the wounds. "I'm sorry for everything he has done, but I cannot do anything. I cannot leave. I am bound to this place until someone releases me."

I couldn't help but step forward and grab her arm. It seemed to shock her that I could physically touch her. "Tia, I am Hana Eve. I am the Spirit of Halloween, of All Hallows Eve. I share the powers of a reaper. I can take you from this place." I gestured to the Palestine Oak. "You've been trapped here for so long…"

Her eyes filled with tears. "Could you? Would you really be able to take me to him? All the other reapers left me here, saying I still held too much regret to be taken away. Could you really let me move on?"

I nodded, the anxious feeling mounting in my stomach again. "I can." I took her hand and covered it with my own. "Please, before I do, you have to promise to stop Tucian from proceeding with his plans. The world cannot be shrouded in darkness. It isn't time yet for the humans to face mass judgment, and even if it was, it shouldn't be done like this. They shouldn't be forced to sin and commit suicide."

She nodded, a short laugh escaping her as tears rolled down her cheeks. "Yes, yes I agree! Please, take me to see my Tucian." She wiped the tears away as Onyx approached us as well. "I cannot stop him from being Lucifer, but I can try to stop him from this. I'm very sorry he took someone from you. Was he your husband?"

I shook my head. "No just… someone very dear to me." I helped her on to Onyx's back and frowned. "He was the only man I ever loved." I found no point in keeping anything secret anymore. Talking about him helped.

"Was he a Spirit like you?"

"In a way." I swung into Hessian's saddle and turned him around. "We need to hurry."

She nodded and I spurred both horses on. I knew where I was going and opened a portal of my own with the help of the shadows of the oak. "Stay close, Onyx."

The Nightmare snorted in understanding and kept her pace matched with Hessian's. They didn't slow down for a moment as we slunk into the shadows. I heard Tia gasp. "I'm free."

I nodded. "Yes. This is what I call The Void. I use it to travel large distances with the help of Hessian."

She caught my gaze. "Did he teach you how to use The Void?"

I nodded again. "Yes. He taught me everything I know." I gave a soft laugh. "He showed affection in very strange ways, but they were unique to him. It was different from what I was used to. In the end, I grew to love him in a way I never thought I'd love anyone."

Tia looked ahead. "I felt the same about Tucian. He treated me better than my own husband did."

I remembered she had been traded for what was thought to be good farm land. We didn't know much else.

"Tucian taught me to read, how to fend for myself, and how to defend myself if I went into town to gather supplies. He let me out more than a captor usually would let his slaves out. I didn't feel like a slave. I was treated better as one than I was as a wife."

"Funny. My life improved vastly after I became a Chosen."

She frowned. "Chosen? I thought you were a Spirit?"

"Same thing, different name, in a way." I gripped Hessian's reins tighter as he continued to speed to the end of the tunnels. "I'm sure you've heard the stories of the Man in the Moon."

"Yes, I've heard word of him. He exists?"

"As much as I do, yet no one has seen him. None of us, at least. He does speak to us when he needs to, such as when he gives us a new life." I glanced down at my wrists for the briefest of moments, but Tia must have been watching me.

"Your burns… Were you bound?"

I swallowed past a lump in my throat, feeling my collar tighten. Knowing that the collar now lost its main purpose only made me sadder. "I didn't believe in God when I was alive in the early fifteen-hundreds. Back then, if you didn't believe, you were a witch, a sinner, a heathen. You didn't deserve the life God supposedly gave you if you spurned Him from your life." My hand traveled to my collar. I showed her what only one man had seen to this day. I showed her my throat. "I was tried and hung as a witch while my whole village cheered."

She went silent for a moment, processing the information, and I let her have her time. It wasn't every day she would meet someone like me, or the other Chosen. "Why a collar? The most logical form of coverage would be a scarf, wouldn't it?"

My fingers trailed over the thick leather of the collar. _"I know you hate the marks, so I've brought you a gift." He pulled a wide piece of leather from the inside of his coat._

_I looked at him incredulously. "A collar? I know I can be a bitch, but this is a bit much, isn't it?"_

_I had made him laugh. "I'm only trying to help, Hana, you know this. And I've faced bitchier." He stood behind me and fastened the collar around my throat. _

"_Owners usually collar their pets."_

"_You catch on quick." He turned me around, placing his fingers to the material. "It's missing something…" He held on to it and encircled the bend in shadows. A D-ring and a skull charm materialized in his palm and he gave a small smirk. "Owners also tag their pets."_

_My breath hitched in my throat as he let the charm go and trailed his fingers down my exposed skin. "Just because you found me doesn't make me yours." I almost hated how he could make me breathless. "However, I suppose everything else you've done for me does. The moment you ask me to jump through hoops, your pet will bite back."_

_He let out a dark chuckle that made a tingle run up my spine. A lead materialized in his grasp and he tugged me forward, letting me realize it had attached to the ring. "Ooh, I look forward to it."_

"Hana?"

I shook my head. "What?"

"I asked you why a collar?"

"Oh." I looked down at the charm that only stared back with an empty gaze. "It… was a gift. To help me cope with what had happened."

I looked to her as she nodded. Tia reached into her dress and pulled out a simple chain. No charms or gems rested on it. It was just a plain chain. "Tucian gave this to me. It was the first gift I had ever received from a man. It was something special, and made me realize he wasn't as horrible as he let on to everyone."

I pressed my lips together as the end of the tunnel approached. "Let's just hope he will still react the same to you now as he did then." I locked my gaze with hers. "I hope you're ready."

"I am."

"Well then." I flicked Hessian's reins. "I believe it's time we end this."


	17. Chapter 17

17.

I had expected devastation upon my return, only due to how long it had felt I was gone. Instead I still heard the clashing of weapons and the calls of a heavy battle. We emerged from under the bleachers of the soccer field and both horses stopped short upon exiting The Void. I couldn't see anyone at all, but the sounds were deafening. I dismounted and moved to help Tia down. "This way." I led her across the snow-covered fields, following the only clues I had to the others. We had to avoid many dead snakes, as well as the bodies of fallen goatmen.

I could clearly see Tia's pained expression in the light of the moon. "He did all this…"

I nodded, pushing forward. "No time to dwell on it. Come on." We followed the noises in to the woods nearby, following a freshly drawn trail of blood in the once-white snow. An inhuman cry ripped through the night almost right ahead of us. When we broke through the trees, we stopped as they gave way to a clearing. North drove his sword up through a goatman's jaw, yanking it out once it penetrated the thing's skull. With it downed, the five pressed their backs together in a circle, looking for any other opponents.

As I was about to bring Tia from the thick forest, Lucifer himself came out of the shadows, approaching the Guardians. "You are stubborn, I'll give you that. However, it is getting late, isn't it Santa Claus? Ten at night, by my calculations. I hope you can reach all the children of the world in time." His teeth reflected the moonlight as he grinned. "That is, if you can get back to that sleigh of yours."

I felt Tia grip my arm tightly, and I couldn't blame her for whatever she must have been feeling. She had gone so long without seeing the man she loved, and when she finally could have the chance, she saw him as a shell of his former self. "This isn't right…"

I could only nod at her fearful whisper. Even though I liked Tia, and wanted nothing but her happiness, I wanted Lucifer dead. He deserved it for everything he had done. For… for his death. I clenched my teeth together to steady myself. I looked away from the clearing. One person was going to end up hurt this night.

I refused to let Tia be that person. "Tia, stay here."

"What will you do?"

"Whatever I have to. When I motion for you, come out. Until then, stay put." Once sure she understood, I emerged from the trees. "Lucifer, you have to stop."

His gaze turned to me and I swallowed my rage. His grin only broadened. "So the coward returns. I had thought you would have fled for good after what I did to that Boogieman of yours." He gave a deep growl of a laugh that only snapped another thin thread of my control. "Such a shame he didn't get a chance to say his final words while you were around. I'm sure they would have been… sentimental."

"You obviously didn't know him that well." I summoned my scythes to my sides again. "This is your last warning. Call off this whole thing, and I'll let you walk away from this unscathed."

He laughed as the others looked at me incredulously. "The Guardians and the Boogieman were no match for me and my army. What makes you think you'll fair any better?"

I looked to the trees and nodded. "I have a weapon the others didn't have."

He followed my gaze and I could see his entire demeanor falter. "L-Lucretia?"

Tia came into the moonlight, giving off a slight ethereal glow as a ghost. "Tucian." She smiled sadly. "It's been too long, my love."

He took a tentative step forward. "It's… it can't be. I had thought you moved on. I couldn't find you. I looked everywhere. It can't…" He looked to me, his sneer returning. "How dare you trick me with Lucretia's image! I'll send you to your grave once and for all!" He moved to strike me and I had to dodge out of the way of his sword.

I hadn't expected that reaction. I wasn't even sure what reaction he would have given. The others tried to move forward to help, but I called to them to stay put. Lucifer was my target and mine alone. I crossed my scythes in front of me, catching his sword as he tried to drive it down. "It really is Tia! Look closely! I brought her here for you, you son of a bitch!" The metal screamed as I drew the scythes apart, pushing his sword back just long enough to roll out of the way.

"You lying whore! I'll see to it I kill you myself this time!"

His strikes increased in velocity. I couldn't keep up. I parried every attack I could and countered when I had the opportunity, but he only blocked and parried as well. My scythes were caught on his sword and he drew his boot up to deliver a blow to my stomach. I had no way of blocking it, and was sent back into the snow. I felt the sharp shock of cold run through me and I rolled over and tried to scramble for my fallen weapons.

Lucifer kicked them away from my grasp and shifted to kick my stomach again, sending me to my back as an explosion of pain racked my entire being. I went blind for a moment, and couldn't hear much besides a dull ringing. The pain came again and again as he carried out blow after blow, more than I could handle.

As soon as it all started, it stopped. I opened my eyes to see the moonlight staring back at me. _This is familiar, isn't it Manny?_ A dark shadow blocked my view of the moon. The light reflected off a shining surface, hitting my vision as the shadow cleared to show Lucifer standing over me, his sword ready to be driven down. I had no fight left in me, not after before, not after traveling The Void. Not after being beaten down.

"I'll make sure your soul is tormented after it is severed from your body."

I felt blood rise up in my throat and I coughed it up uselessly, flinching at the thick copper tang. He must have punctured something. "So long as… so long as I don't have to listen to your voice."

"No, that would be too easy for a deceitful witch like yourself." His grin shined through the night again. "I think I'll have you… hang around for a few thousand years." His laughter echoed through the night, heightening my anxiety.

"The- the villagers were right to kill you. You're a monster."

"Yes I am!" He pulled back to strike and I closed my eyes, waiting for the pain to rip through my body.

It never came. I looked to see Tia's arms wrapped around his waist, holding him back from delivering the killing blow. "Please, Tucian, stop this. Why must they all die?"

"The world needs to remember who I am, what I am capable of," he replied, sounding almost unsure of himself.

"But why? Tucian, this isn't you. This isn't who you are."

"Tucian is dead. I am Lucifer."

"I don't care!" Even I almost jumped at her shout. I would have had I not been on my back in more pain than I remembered ever being in. "Tucian or Lucifer, whoever you are, why does the world need to die to remember who you are? What will there be to remember when they're all dead, in your realm?"

Lucifer's sword fell slightly. "They need to remember."

"They need to live to remember." She let go of his waist and stood between myself and him. "Tell me this. What would you do after? What would you do when the whole world was at your command?"

He tried to answer, but found he couldn't.

After a few moments of silence, Tia took his hands in hers, pulling his sword out of his weakened grasp. "Tucian, please. Let this go."

"If no one remembers, then who am I?"

"You are Tucian. My lover. The man who cares most for me." She pulled the chain out of her dress again. His gaze immediately fell to it. "Please Tucian. Let's move on."

"I-I can't. Tia, I can't. What if—"

Despite the situation, she let out a soft huff of a laugh. "What if, what if. Is that what you've been reduced to lingering on? So long as one person remembers your name, you will never be forgotten." She pulled him into a tight embrace. "You will never be alone."

The night air went silent and heavy as a cold breeze past through, easing some of my pain.

"I remembered you all this time. Doesn't that count for anything?"

"It does, but—"

"There is no more to fight about." She gestured to me. "This woman has given me the chance to move on from this world. I am no longer bound to it. It is my choice where I go."

If a soul was as pure as hers, she had an instant pass to get in to the other realm once she let go of her regret. However, she also had a choice. No one ever chose to take it, for obvious reasons.

"If you continue this madness, I will cross over to the other realm, and you will never see me again." She took his face in her hands and made him look at her. Despite her being a head and a half shorter than him, he still allowed it. "Don't make me do that, Tucian. I don't want to, but I will. Make your choice."

I was shocked she was willing to make such a sacrifice. This was the first time she had seen the man she loved in several thousand years. Yet here she was, ready to give all of that up just to save the rest of the world. And here I was, on the cold ground, alone, regretting how I could never forgive a man for something he had done a century ago, and knowing I could never have the chance to forgive him.

After what seemed like hours, Lucifer finally answered. "Let's go home, Tia." Without another word, he faded away with Lucretia, leaving the six of us alone in the woods.

A few moments of silence passed. "What just happened?" I said to the sky, still hurting quite a bit.

"I think… I think we won," Jack breathed out from somewhere to my right.

I wanted to cheer, I really did. It just didn't seem right. "At what cost?" I saw a hand reach out and I took it, feeling an instant familiar chill. Jack helped me to my feet and kept me steady as a sharp pain racked my bruised ribs. They all had reason to cheer. So why weren't they?

"I'm so sorry, Hana," he whispered, and the others approached us, heads bowed.

I nodded. "At least we won. That's what matters."

Heavy limping footsteps fell in the snow, faint at first, and then it grew louder. The others drew their weapons again, ready to strike at a moment's notice. Lucifer may have been gone, but that didn't mean one of his goatmen couldn't have been left behind. My anxiety mounted as it got louder, right behind the trees. I was defenseless, and I knew everyone was on their last legs. We would not be able to handle another assault.

My legs almost gave out from under me as a tall figure emerged from the trees, looking almost in as much pain as I was. I couldn't believe it. There was no way…

I lightly pushed away from Jack, nearly falling as soon as he let me go, both from my pain and from my seemingly boneless legs. "It can't—Powers above, is it really you?"

He could only grin, his pale eyes shining in the moonlight. "Took awhile to find you all. I take it we've won?"


	18. Chapter 18

Sorry for a minor cliffy. This is the second to last chapter, so be sure to leave lots of love. I know there are quite a few of you readers out there. Leave your thoughts, good or bad. :)

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18

I had planned on being in pain that night, just not in the physical way. I took another small step forward, still not trusting my eyes or my balance. "I saw you… I saw you get stabbed through." I took another step as he stood still. "I saw him twist the blade." I blinked to try and clear my vision, thinking it was an illusion. "I saw you fall."

He chuckled, and I noticed him holding a hand to his bloody chest. "It isn't serious. Just a minor hole in my chest."

I wasn't one to display a variety of emotions in public. I tended to not show when I was upset, nor when I was scared. I never wanted to appear weak in front of people. However, seeing him standing there, alive and… alive, at least, I couldn't stop the elation that tore through my entire being. A lump formed in my chest, and I felt tears stain my cheeks, running through the blood that had escaped my lips. "You're really alive."

"So far as I know."

My small steps became a stumbling gait as it slowly sank in he was really there. My body screamed at me to stop moving, to just lie still, but I refused. I kept going until my legs finally gave out and I fell forward into him. In his own weakened state he dropped to his knees with me. Instinctively I held on as tightly as I could, overwhelmed at being able to physically touch him again. "I thought you were dead," I muttered into his shoulder.

"I had to make you think I was. I couldn't have your mind worrying about me."

"Jerk." I wanted to slap him, to make him hurt for lying to me. Instead, I kissed him, never wanting him to leave again. Now I knew how he felt when he fought against the toxins in my veins. I knew exactly why he made love to me that night in such a desperate way.

Someone clearing their throats made me remember we weren't alone. Embarrassment rushed through me and I pulled back, letting me realize he was flinching in pain. "There is a minor problem," he said through clenched teeth. "I do still have a bloody hole in my chest."

"We'll take you back to Pole," North said, making me look at the others. I suppressed a blush as I saw Sandy making suggestive signs with his sand, and Jack merely smiled, leaning on his staff. "You can rest there."

Tooth perked up with her fairies. "North, what about Christmas? How will you get all the presents delivered in time? It's almost sunrise in the other continents!"

"We can deliver them," Bunny offered. "We did it for you, why not for North?"

"Only if you all have energy to help."

I wanted to help, and almost offered. However, the pain in my ribs reminded me it would be a very bad idea to run around delivering presents to children.

"I think we can find a second wind," Jack answered. "Though I believe Hana is also out for helping. That was quite a beating you took."

On top of the fact I bruised easily, yeah, I'd be feeling the blows for quite some time. I nodded, wanting nothing more than to sleep right where I was, feeling protected and at ease. "Rest is top of the list of things to do when we return." With how much pain I was in, sex was for sure not up there on the list of priorities. And I was sure the same went for him.

North let out a whoop of joy that almost made me even more tired just from looking at him. "It is settled. Let us go and save Christmas."

* * *

I managed to not fall to pieces on the trip back, and I still remained intact as I was returned to the spare room. I would have preferred to return to Italy, but there was no time to make side trips, and I don't think many of us had much left in us to travel out of the way. So, when Pitch's chest was sealed up and set right again, the others left in a rush to salvage Christmas.

The damage had been done, however, and there was no repairing the families who lost a child, a parent, a spouse, a partner to Lucifer's evil plans. There would still be somber Christmas mornings for many. Despite that, it could have been much, much worse. I considered ourselves extremely lucky to have come across the story of Tia. Without her, Lucifer would have won and there would have been no Christmas. There would have been nothing at all.

I winced as I subconsciously slouched and was reprimanded by both my bruised ribs and the man behind me.

"Hold still. I'm almost through."

Even breathing hurt, but the pain was beginning to lesson in that area. Even so, I still would hurt for awhile. Once his own wounds had been sealed up he had come into the room and ordered me to take everything above my waist off. It had been an excruciating ordeal, but it had to be done. I'd also been too tired to argue. He had sat behind me on the bed and started to bind my ribs with bandages he must have acquired from North. I didn't mind it in the slightest, since I was able to feel his deft fingers working to bind my torso properly. Every now and again he would brush against bare skin, leaving me with chills. For once, there was nothing sexual about it. I enjoyed feeling his touch, just as much as he enjoyed feeling my exposed flesh.

Was I still a little mad at him for making me believe he was dead? Of course I was, but I understood why did it. Instead of worrying about how he was doing in battle while I was gone, I only focused on the end goal. He didn't have to know I wasn't as angry as I seemed. The whole time he bound my sides we stayed silent, the only noise being my hisses as he passed over sensitive flesh. When he was done he motioned for me to turn around. I did so carefully, seeing he had discarded his coat at some point. He pulled me forward into a protective grasp and I responded in kind. We didn't say anything. He only stroked my hair. Completely innocent.

Something about it made me realize the alternative, if Lucifer hadn't missed anything vital. It made me realize what I almost had to live with. I don't think I could have done it. A life without him… it wouldn't be worth living. The powerful possibility of how close I had been to living that life made me clutch tighter to his bare shoulders, pressing my face in the crook of his neck as tears flowed past my eyes.

What started as silent tears slowly grew into shaky sobs and his own grasp grew. He would have been gone, still believing I didn't trust him with all of me. He would have died without finding his Queen of Nightmares. He would have faded from existence never having the one thing he truly wanted to find again. A family. I could never provide children for him; we had found out early on in our relationship I couldn't get pregnant. However, I could at least play some part of a stable life for him. I tried to control my tears, though it took much of my restraint to do so. "I'm so sorry, Kozmotis."

He pulled back, letting me see him frown. "Why are you apologizing?"

"All this time I've been cautious with you, too afraid that you'd revert to who you were." I swallowed, trying to calm down further. "I had trouble trusting you completely again. I realize now it was stupid. I should have seen how much you've changed."

He shook his head, putting his hands to my shoulders. "You don't need to apologize. I wouldn't trust me either after everything I did to you." He tilted my head up so I could keep his gaze. "Serah, I didn't expect you to trust me again. I barely expected you to let me back into your life after all the pain I caused you."

"I trust you now. This whole thing made me realize I needed to give you a better chance." I leaned in to his hand as he pressed it to my cheek. "I almost lost the only man to understand me in both my lives, and I would have lost you without trusting you with everything I am as I once did." I cast my gaze down. "I'd provide you with the thing you desire most if I could."

He looked confused for a moment again before the realization sunk in. His own gaze grew sad. "If only you could." He moved his thumb against my cheek. "Though there is no set custom that says a family cannot consist of just two people. And I know you could give me that at least."

I couldn't breathe for a second. It could have either been from the shock of his words or a flash of pain from my ribs. Or both even. I crashed my lips to his and only nodded. I couldn't say anything, and I don't believe he wanted to either. I still was in no condition for anything hot and heavy that night, but that didn't stop him from laying us on our sides carefully, never breaking the kiss for a moment. It was all we did for almost an hour, as if we were experimental teenagers kissing for the first time. Not once did he break our contact to unbutton my shorts, and I didn't try to get in his pants. It was something we hadn't done in a very long time. It was intimate, very intoxicating, but not sexual. Oh of course, it was getting me horny and would not have thrown him off if he tried to fuck me, bruises be damned, but it was still nice on its own. We laid entangled in each other's grasps on our sides, giving the sense of a lack of dominance. He stroked the skin of my arm and I ran my fingers over his back lightly, heightening his pleasure.

His tongue pressed against my lips and I shifted them to allow him through, a moan slipping through as I did. His tongue danced with mine and my grip on his back increased a bit. I could feel his cock straining against me through our clothes, and I was curious why he was fighting it. I pulled back a bit and shifted my hips. "Don't you want to take care of that?"

He shook his head. "It isn't important." He pressed his lips to mine in a soft long kiss. "I'm satisfied with these sweet lips of yours right now."

I laughed against his lips and pushed away from him slightly. "Are they really so satisfying?"

"Mm, they are. Addicting like a sweet poison."

I grinned. "Is that all that's addicting."

"Of course not." He trailed kisses down my throat to my collarbone. "Your skin is intoxicating." His ran over my bandaged chest. "Your tits are captivating." The digits strayed lightly over my skin as he went down to my shorts. He rubbed against the juncture of my hips, making me gasp. "And your pussy is the sweetest thing I've ever tasted besides your lips." He kissed my lips again, returning his hands to my hips.

Besides that, he didn't touch me the whole night. And, for once I was alright with it. I fell asleep in his arms, at ease with the world. However, he did join me in my dream, continuing on where our battered and bruised bodies could not, both void of all clothing. He sat on the bed, leaning against the wall as I straddled him and sunk on to his hardened cock, both of us gasping as he slipped inside. This was one of the perks to sleeping with the Boogieman. Ethereal sex was more intense than physical. All mental boundaries were gone, and we could feel what the other most desired. I leaned against his shoulders and he gripped on to my ass, using it to move me how he wanted, even though I knew what made him feel the best. It was a move of dominance, something I loved from him.

My nails dug in to his shoulders as he thrust his hips against mine, meeting my pace and quickly surpassing it, a growling sigh escaping his clenched teeth with almost every push. "Serah… You feel so good on me."

A sharp moan rushed past my lips as he pushed in hard. "Don't stop." I leaned back, holding on to his legs. Instantly I felt a change in pressure and I clenched around him. His hands shifted to rest on my hips, holding me up. One slipped a bit closer to my inner thigh, letting his thumb push against my exposed clit. A rush of excitement tore through me. "Mm, Kozmotis. That's it, love." I froze as the pleasure exploded through me, but he kept up his thrusts. My head fell backward as I came around him, screaming for him to not stop. I remember vaguely that I threatened to kill him if he stopped. Instead he quickly shifted to his knees, pressing me into the dream mattress hard, picking up the paces of his thrusts. I could tell he was close by his sharp moans and his clenched jagged teeth.

"I'm coming, Serah," he groaned, giving a harder thrust for a moment. His grip increased.

I locked my legs around his bared waist, keeping him inside me. Since we were in the ethereal plane, I wanted him to ride it out as he was. I could only press my lips to his as I grabbed on to whatever part of him I could.

I felt his grip bite into my skin and his body jerked a few times. "That's it. Take it all, my Queen." He thrust his hips into me faster, a long, guttural, and completely sexy moan escaping his lips as he came inside me, his pace never slowing as he filled me up. I loved when he let go completely, both in our dreams and in real life. His heaving chest only made me want more of him. I didn't let him go and instead leaned up to continue our kiss, rocking my hips against his softening flesh.

He hissed and chuckled. "Give me a few minutes, Serah. Then we can go again." He ran his tongue down the ribbed skin of my throat, pressing his lips to it. "And I'll be fucking you from behind this time."

I purred. "Will you? How will you be doing that?"

"Easy." He bit into the crook of my neck hard, making me gasp. He pulled back and licked the skin. "Get on your knees."

I shivered at his voice and did as he said as he let me up. I knelt before him, but it didn't seem like what he really wanted. He gripped my hair in his hand and pushed me down, putting me face to face with his recovering cock.

"Suck it, pet. Make me hard again so I can fuck you senseless."

I ran my tongue over him, tasting his climax mixed with mine. It made an exotic mix and gave me no excuses to not pull his soft flesh in my mouth. He hissed between his teeth, a satisfied grin on his face. I pressed my tongue to the darker flesh of his balls while I could reach them and he hummed an encouragement, his grip on my hair tightening while I licked the salt from his skin. When I pulled back, he was too hard and large to reach them again. Instead I focused on his tip, flicking my tongue over his tiny mass of nerves and sucking on the flesh. He moved my head as he wanted, hissing when I hit a still sensitive point.

Without warning he pulled me off and moved to kneel behind me, pressing me down to my hands. I felt a tug on my throat and saw he had formed the shadow lead on the collar. He pressed his hips to my ass and I could feel him slide against my slit. With a slight pop he pushed inside, making a high moan leave my throat as he immediately hit something deep inside me. I didn't have to be afraid of being too loud when we were in our dreams, and so I didn't make him stop. Usually this position was too much for me, but here I had no problems with it, and he loved it since it was what I screamed most with.

I fell to my elbows and he kept me up with his hands on my hips, pulling me back on him every time he pushed forward, making him go deep inside me. I gripped the sheets hard as my moans became louder. "Mm, Pitch. It's too good!" I arched my back against him.

"I'm not done with you yet."

He was far from done. He pulled the lead, making me arch further, and he instantly hit something in me at a better angle. I clenched my eyes closed and mewled for him. I didn't want him to stop. I wanted him to bring me over the edge as many times as he could. I don't know what I would have done if I had lost all of this. The pressure inside me increased and I squeezed him too hard. His continuous thrusts only drew out the climax, bringing it to a height that tore through my chest, filling my mind and making it cloudy. He wrapped an arm around my waist and I held on to it.

"Call for me."

A sharp thrust of his hips made me gasp out, "Pitch…"

His teeth sank into my neck in punishment. "Not that name," he said into my skin.

I moaned again. "Kozmotis."

His hips jerked hard against me. "Again."

"Kozmotis."

"Louder."

He increased his pace and I almost couldn't think. My cries became short screams and my nails dug into the skin of his arms. "Kozmotis! It's too much! I can't—I -!" I yelped as I came hard around him, a harsh cry escaping my throat. He let out a strangled moan of his own as I tightened hard around him.

He let out a shaky laugh. "What are you trying to do? Squeeze my dick off?"

"I can't help it." I hummed a satisfied moan. "You feel too good."

"Due to your squeezing I'm coming again," he said into my ear, pressing his chest to my back. "Be sure to take it all, Serah."

I fought against his grip on the lead of the collar as I felt his pace increase for a last time, as I heard his moans and sighs sharpen and quicken in frequency. My head swam as my muscles contracted around him, milking him of everything he had. He gave a low hum of a moan as he slowed down, twitching a bit as he held still, his grasp on the lead finally slacking. I panted as my heart thundered against my chest, refusing to calm down. I chuckled as he fell slack against my back. "I can't hold you up, you know."

"I know." His chest expanded against my skin quickly, letting me feel how hard his own heart was beating. He used his grip around my waist to pull me to my side, replacing us where we were when we had entered the dream.

Everything felt right as our limbs entangled. Lucifer was defeated, and reunited with his lost love. North and the others had enough time to save the rest of Christmas. Tia had been able to move on. I hadn't lost the only family I had known almost all my life.

Family…

I had never experienced the supposed joys of motherhood in my mortal life. And now that was robbed of me in my afterlife. It didn't seem fair, but it was how it was meant to be. He allowed the dream to disperse, letting me rise to consciousness long enough to feel his real grip around me tighten as we both settled back into our own dreams.

I, however, was greeted by another old acquaintance, one who hadn't spoken a word to me for four hundred and sixty years. He made me an offer I couldn't refuse. I accepted his gift with tears in my eyes, unable to believe what he had given me.

I could only wait to see if it was real, or if it was only a dream.


	19. Epilogue

Alas my readers, this is where the adventure ends. I hope you've enjoyed the ride. I may or may not include one shots along the way, so if you have this story watched, keep it watched. Installments may or may not happen depending on if more ideas pop in my head.  
I've also completed Hana's design. Her newest image can be found in my profile, since stories aren't allowed to have links.

* * *

19.

There were a lot of changes that came over the next year, and not just from my end of the world. Jack had finally accepted Toothiana's, ah, subtle advances and the two went on a few dates. It didn't go particularly well, but they had at least tried it. Sandy created a whole new batch of his Dreamsand, forming a more potent but lovely batch for kids who couldn't sleep very well. Bunny enlisted the aid of us all to put our individuality into the eggs for that year, and when I say all, he didn't leave anyone out, surprisingly. Needless to say it was a bit nerve-wracking appearing in the Warren with Pitch, but he behaved himself, and actually had a bit of fun painting morbid eggs. Tooth's fairies grew in numbers, and a few of the older ones began to take over her position, giving her more time to rest after four hundred and forty years of collecting teeth. And North? Well, he let some of his elves finally distribute their toys. It didn't end as badly as we thought it would have. Only a dozen houses caught on fire. Pitch agreed to back off the children a bit, and still managed to keep his name known.

Even the horses had a change, which is where I was that New Year's Eve night. Hessian pranced back and forth in his stall, looking towards Onyx with anxious glowing eyes. I smiled at the stallion, feeling his elation. I sat in a corner of Onyx's stall, where she was using my legs as a pillow. The poor Nightmare was so tired after all her exertion that night. It had all been worth it though. Staying up almost twenty-eight hours, making sure I could be there for her whenever it would happen, it was worth every hour. I stroked her sand-mane as she snorted heavily, calming her heart down.

Around her legs a tiny filly wobbled, her green-marked black fur matted down still from birth. How Hessian managed to knock up the Nightmare was beyond me, but the filly was such a miracle I didn't care of the mechanics. She had fur, like her father, stained green in an intricate swirl pattern like its mother, colored by Hessian. When the filly opened her eyes, I was able to see she had received Onyx's eyes. The filly let out a weak cry as she wobbled to her legs, shaking as she propped herself up on all four hooves.

"Come on," I cooed, holding out my hand. "That's it, you've got it."

The filly shook as she pulled one foot up to step forward. She stumbled forward a bit but managed to catch herself. Hessian gave a worried snort as he paced in his stall. He'd have to wait, the big baby. The filly nuzzled her mother in a few places before finding her way to the milk. Again, how Onyx was able to produce such a thing astounded me, but who was I to argue? From my own state, it was true that anything was possible.

I watched with tired eyes as the baby wiggled happily, drinking her fill. I continued to stroke Onyx's mane as she finally calmed down, her breath coming out in short, soft bursts. "I may never figure out how you managed this one, but I have to say, she is pretty." I looked to Hessian. "What do you think, Dad?"

His consciousness pressed to mine. "_I made that."_

I let a breath of a laugh out. "Yes, you did. What will you two call her?"

"_Bellini."_

I nodded, looking to the filly who had decided to try out her legs some more. "Bellini it is."

"Is it? I suppose it is fitting."

I looked up to see my King of Nightmares leaning over the wall of the stall, eyeing the filly. "You missed it all."

"From what I know, I would have rather not been around for it." He looked to Hessian. "How did he hold up?"

"Like a normal man would. He panicked and fainted at one point."

"I'd like to say I didn't before. And I won't again." Onyx shifted to her feet with a grunt, and the filly gave a sharp, startled cry. The 'mare stepped forward and nuzzled her master in a tired manner. "How is my lovely Nightmare doing?" Onyx snorted, her eyes half open. "I see."

I found it funny how he could communicate with Onyx, and I could speak with Hessian, but we couldn't hear the other's steed at all. "What did she say?"

"She said she never wants to do something like that again." He stroked her muzzle while Bellini pranced behind her legs, nipping at the sand tendrils. "I believe it will only be a temporary state of mind, though." Onyx tossed her head. "Yes it will," he answered.

As he talked to Onyx, I held on to the back wall, hefting myself up. My muscles were getting more and more sore as the days went on, but not much else gave me away. Unless a random smell set me off.

I leaned back into his grasp as he moved away from Onyx. "And how is my Queen feeling tonight?"

"Tired and sore, but fine nonetheless." I pulled from his grip to unlock Hessian's pen, letting the antsy stallion free. "I take it not a lot of people were asleep when you passed through?"

"I should stop venturing out every New Year's Eve. There isn't much point anymore."

I left the stalls to let the new family bond on their own, viewing them from afar by leaning against the gate. I felt his arms snake around my waist, settling around my belly. "You can stay here with me then, especially if something like this happens again." I leaned my head back as he kissed my neck, around the collar.

"I will be around more in a few months. I have enough Nightmares remade to send them out on their own. However, I'd like to increase their numbers for more widespread terror."

"Mm." I arched back against him as his hands roamed over my chest. "And I've been working with the bats; they should also be fine on their own."

"You've perfected the powders?"

"I wouldn't send them out if they weren't ready." While it was a horrible experience, the Mark of Trial had given me an idea on how to help Pitch more, and keep him home more nights for my own selfish needs. I created my own fear toxins that would be dusted on the victims while they slept. It was a minor dose, nothing as horrible as the Mark. Just enough to create night terrors and bad dreams. In return, the bats would feed off the fear and bring it back to us, reducing time spent in the field. With my condition, it needed to be done. "So we both won't have to work nearly as hard."

"Very good." We fell into a silence, watching the horses interact with Bellini. Hessian seemed so proud of his offspring and pranced around her, stopping to nuzzle Onyx, who was beginning to tire more. Bellini yawned and pushed against her mother, signaling she would like to sleep.

I yawned as well, my own exhaustion catching up to me. It had been a long time since I had been awake for so long. And my condition didn't help that at all. I allowed Pitch to lead me away from the equestrian family, bringing us back up to the main corridors of his lair. "Did you manage to get anyone?" I asked.

"Enough." He snorted. "I managed to make one child wet the bed in terror. So it was a good night."

I wrapped my arms around his left arm, leaning in to his body. "My big, strong, fearsome Boogieman."

"You forgot terrifying."

I rolled my eyes. "Yes, the most terrifying thing known to man." My gaze dropped down. Well, one of the most terrifying things, at least.

He caught my gaze. "It is a daunting thing. Trust me, I know. But it will all be alright in the end."

I smiled as we passed through a beam of moonlight. It had been a shocking feeling at first, when my cycles began to start again. I had been so afraid I hadn't said anything to Pitch for the first several months. Of course, it was hard to hide that sort of evidence given where we lived. What many people did not realize was that, while he was a fearsome creature of the night, he did have his own weaknesses, just like anyone else. He missed his daughter so much, and it pained him to know she was always just beyond his grasp with her life as Mother Nature. He did want it to be like it was before the incident with the fearlings. I had wanted to provide that life for him for the longest time.

Now, with Manny's gift, I was able to do just that.

"While I am scared," I said to break the silence, "I'm relaxed at the same time. It may be my center talking, but it all seems like it will be a beautiful process."

He said nothing. He only took me down the corridors leading to the catacombs. He usually brought me there to keep my skills honed, and because the spirits of the dead tended to be a nuisance if not kept in check. As soon as the walls started to become bones, I could hear the lost souls looking for their answers. He stopped at a particular skull and took it from the wall, inspecting it with genuine interest. "What did this one die of?"

"Let me see." I touched my fingertips to the skull, resting my palms against his hands. I frowned, not finding traces of the bubonic plague like I usually could for most of those bones. We were so far down, the first victims made up a good portion of these corridors. "Strange… This one's not like the others. The soul has moved on, but there's still some residual traces of the person." I tried finding the source, and paused immediately as I began digging up more memories than I thought I'd find. "It's a man. His name was Martelli. The most powerful memories I can find are of someone named Felecia." My heart fell as I found what had brought him down in the catacombs. "She was a victim of the plague, but he was not. He couldn't carry on. He died a broken man." I took my hands back. "It seems not everyone gets their happy ending."

"Not everyone deserves one." He placed the skull where it was meant to be. We spent the remainder of the night in the catacombs, with him providing skulls or bits of bone for me to identify. I'm not sure why, but he loved that talent, and would listen as I told him stories of the past, brought to life by the memories in the bones. I lost track of time as I trailed my fingers over the bones gently, afraid I'd break some of the oldest ones. I enjoyed doing this. It gave me a sort of satisfied feeling. Everyone dies, yes, but how many have their life stories heard? My talents allowed them to have at least someone know who they were, what they did with their lives. Many were interesting. Doctors, police, victims of murder and disease, lawyers, soldiers. It didn't really matter what their social class was when they were tossed down here to rot like the others. As sad as the thought was, I was still able to see the faces of the dead. I could see the lives they all touched.

Which is why I almost started crying when I reached a set of bones smaller than the ones I had been reading all night.

He didn't fail to notice how I suddenly went quiet. Not much went by him. "Hana?"

I knelt down and gently touched the small skull, sucking in a sharp breath as I felt nothing but pain, confusion. I pulled away, my fingers shaking. I swallowed hard, but continued on as I had been all night. "This one was a child. Barely a year old. She fell victim to the plague." I touched the skull as if it still had hair to stroke, imitating a calming presence. "She had no idea what was happening. She wasn't old enough to understand death yet." I felt his hand on my shoulder, but I kept going. "She was born to a poor family. Her father passed of the plague before she was born. She fell sick three months after she came into the world. Her little body couldn't fight- fight it off." I pulled away from the skull finally, unable to go further. The others had been different. They had been adults who had lived their lives already. No child should have to suffer like that newborn had. I knew the history of humans. I knew children suffered immensely, just as the adults, but that didn't make it hurt any less.

"Come. It's time we slept."

I nodded, finding myself wanting to be as far away from the catacombs as possible. We were silent the whole time we traveled the catwalks. Upon entering the bedroom he tended to the fire while I changed into a dull orange nightgown that fell above my knees. I frowned at the length, knowing in a few months time I wouldn't be able to fit into it. I pulled back the dark sheets, and slipped in for the day. I looked over to the fireplace, seeing his motions had died down. "Oogie?"

"I'll join you in awhile."

Which translated to he needed some time to himself. Everything was still a bit much for him as well. I don't think he ever thought he'd be in this position again. I for sure didn't. Once we had tried, a long time ago, but found it was impossible. With that, we had written it off, never expecting the situation to arise. Now that it had… I think any man in his situation would need time to come to terms with what it meant. Especially him. I settled down, finding a comfortable position, knowing it would be harder and harder to do as time passed. With the amount of time I had been awake, worrying about Onyx and Bellini, I fell asleep quickly, but restlessly.

When I woke again, only three hours had gone by. I looked over my shoulder to see his portion still empty, unused. I frowned and quietly shifted out of bed, finding him still sitting before the fireplace. I put my weight to the balls of my feet and approached him as silently as I could. With how distant his gaze was, I doubt he would have heard me if I had fallen on the stone floors. I only knew he was so far gone by how he reacted when I put a gentle hand to his shoulder.

He jumped slightly and cleared his throat. "What are you doing awake?" He didn't exactly look at me as he hid something in his coat.

"I should ask you the same thing." I rested my arms around his neck, letting him lean back into me. "Come to bed, Oogie. Staring at the locket won't help you."

I felt his stiffen under my grasp. "I can pretend it does."

I let out a breath of a laugh. "Don't tell me my King of Nightmares is scared of having a baby."

"No. It's the fact of…" He went silent for a moment, and I let him gather his thoughts. "I suppose I'm a bit out of practice with this father thing." He glanced at me. "Look what happened the first time."

I bit my lip. "Well, yes, but that's entirely circumstantial. You cared for her so immensely, you sacrificed yourself when you believed she was in danger. You can still care for others, I know so." I tilted his chin up so he could look at me. "You care for me, don't you?"

"Of course."

"Then you can do the same for whatever is growing in here." I tried to take my hand back, but he held on to it, pressing it to his lips. "You weren't a bad father, if that's what you believe. If that is why you continue to gaze at your locket. To be willing to die to save her, that's what a good father would do."

He laughed again. "Hana, I haven't been a good anything in centuries."

I frowned. "That's not entirely true. You've been a good friend, a good lover to me. It counts."

"For only so much." He sighed and got up out of his chair, standing stock-still as the locket fell from his coat and opened on the stone floor. Staring back at us was a beautiful little girl with hair as black as night, just like her father.

I had never seen what she looked like. I never asked to look at the picture in the locket, finding that it was something he cherished dearly. Everyone deserves to have something precious to hold close to them. "She looks like you."

He gently picked the locket up, holding it in his palm. "She did. Now she doesn't really take a physical shape too often."

I covered his hands with mine, closing his fingers over the image. "There are many things in everyone's lives we wish we could change. However, it isn't possible to do so. Instead of looking to the past, thinking of all the other ways it could have gone, focus on where you're going." I smiled. "Look at all you've done in just the last two years. Your name is remembered by many. People can see you, hear you again, of all ages. You helped put Lucifer back in his place. You found Tia and helped put her spirit to rest with the man she loves." I reached up and ran a finger over his temple, feeling him press into it subconsciously. "You may not realize it, but you are a good man. You just show it differently."

"I used to… Why did you give me another chance after everything I did?"

It was a good question. I wasn't sure why I did. Many people would have told me to get the hell away from that situation and never turn back. I planned to do just that, and it had been successful for a hundred years. But was it the right thing to do? Was it right to leave him alone when he needed someone to believe in him? He had turned into an abusive, violent man, yes, but was it really the right call to turn my back to him? "I couldn't let you stay alone forever. Not when you had been broken so badly. I shouldn't have left you alone."

"You never fought back. Why?"

"I couldn't. I didn't… didn't know how to." I tried to take my hand back but he kept it in place. "This is what I mean. Don't think of the past. It's been done, there's nothing that can be done to change it. You can change what's to come." My smile returned. "You don't have to be there for everything, you don't even have to be the best father in the world. You are the Boogieman, don't ever change that. You are terrifying, strong, fearsome, and you take shit from no one." I took the other hand from his locket and held it to his heart. "Your center is chaos. Focus on that, and your path will remain clear."

He nodded. "I can already tell you have the instincts to be a good mother."

I let out a short laugh. "I would hope so." I leaned in to him and he instinctively wrapped his arms around me. "You obviously aren't the same man you used to be before I met you."

"Why say that?"

"Manny wouldn't have given me this gift if he didn't think you've changed, good or bad." I pulled away, trying to lead him away from the fire. "Now come to bed. I see I've got to wear you out somehow."

He chuckled but allowed me to lead him to the bed. "I am exhausted, you don't have to do anything to help with that. Though I do appreciate your enthusiasm."

I shoved his shoulders, tossing him down on the sheets. I gave him no chance to get up and straddled his hips, my nightgown exposing more of my thighs. "You say that, yet you're still awake."

"I see someone's a bit feisty."

I leaned over his frame, placing a quick kiss to his lips. "I blame the hormones. They're all over the place." I knew for once he wasn't in the mood for anything sexual. I only wanted him to know that he was still cared for by someone. I got off his hips, letting him up again. "Now get your ass in bed before I make you."

He laughed at my bravado but took the coat off all the same. "I'd like to see you try, Hana." Regardless of his words he slipped in beside me while I resumed the comfortable position I had found earlier. "Do you want to come with me tomorrow? I could use a companion while I work."

I felt his arm rest over my side and I shifted back to get closer. "Of course. You know I love helping with the Nightmares."

"Obviously. You helped Onyx through her labor. If you didn't care for her, you wouldn't have done so."

"That and I was afraid Hessian would do something extremely stupid during the process. He doesn't think clearly when stressed."

"What male could while watching the woman he loves go through that sort of pain?"

I looked at him over my shoulder. "Can I expect you do something extremely stupid?"

"Possibly. I can't say from experience. I was a soldier, you know."

Meaning he wasn't there when his wife gave birth. I held on to his arm and settled back down. "Don't worry. I'll make sure no one knows if you do something stupid."

"I'd hope so. I've worked hard for my reputation. I can't have something like a child ruin it."

I couldn't help but laugh at the image it created. I could only see him pacing as Hessian had done, though in the most humorous of ways. He pinched my arm but I only laughed harder. "Come now," I said between giggles, "surely the Nightmare King can take a joke."

As an answer he leaned over my body as my giggles continued to break through. "Not when I'm the ass of the joke." His grin said otherwise. "Now I thought you wanted me to come to bed to sleep. How am I to do so with you chattering nonsense all day?"

I stuck my tongue out at him and he bit it, making me laugh and push at his chest. "'ock i' off!"

He let go only to take my hands and pin them over my head. "Or what? You'll take away my candy?"

"Oh I'll take away more than your candy, mister." My heart raced as I realized his smile had faded, and he was only staring at me. His eyes were so intense, I couldn't look away. "What is it?"

"I never asked if you were ready for this."

I had never really thought anything otherwise. "Honestly?" I waited for him to nod. "It's the one thing I always wanted to give you, but couldn't. I knew how much you missed your daughter, but I couldn't do anything for you. At least now I can."

"Well then, if that's the case…" He let go of my wrists and ran his hands up my thighs under the sheets. "I think I do need something to wear me out more."

"Oh no no, I don't think so. I offered and you didn't want to."

"I changed my mind." He kissed my neck, finding a sensitive spot.

"Really, knock it off," I said between laughs. He found a weak point and I hummed a soft moan. "Seriously Oogie, I'm still exhausted."

He sighed in mock disappointment but stopped all the same. "As you wish." We settled back down for the day. "However, once night falls, that changes."

"Of course." We both grew quiet, and I listened to the crackling of the fireplace, using it to lull me to sleep. Everything had changed, but for the better. The Guardians had backed off, allowing both Pitch and myself freedom to scare the children, so long as we agreed to keep it minimal. It was all he needed to regain his standing, to be believed in again, and so it was an agreement we could keep.

None of us were alone or cast out anymore. Each of us had found our place in the world. We had all realized or remembered our centers, what drove us on. Some of us more than others. That day, as I drifted off to sleep, I prayed it would stay that way. We had both suffered enough. It was time for a change. It was time for our own happy ending.

We would never be alone or forgotten again.

* * *

I sort of wanted to do a followup chapter, so if it's something you'd like to see, don't hesitate to comment for it. See you around, kiddies.


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